The Third Face
by Offin
Summary: The Japanese have a saying that everyone has 3 faces: one they show the world, the one they show to their close family & friends and the third is one they never show anyone, for it is the truest reflection of themselves. Conrad x Yuuri Conyuu YuuCon KKM (Rated for heavy language and violence!)
1. Chapter 1

It was a rainy, dreary day in Shin Makoku and no one was more bummed out about it than Yuuri.

"Hhaaa~ why does it have to rain on my day off?" he pouted, causing Conrad to pass off a chuckle as a cough.

Currently, the king and his knight were sitting on the floor of Yuuri's room sorting through gifts that had been given to him by various countries for his 18th birthday, (which had passed about 2 months ago) he had been so busy running around doing Maoh-things that he hadn't had a single moment to even think about birthday presents.

So, when Yuuri had showed up in Conrad's office looking bored because his only day off in a long time was rained in, his knight suggested they do this to beat the stormy weather.

"Most of this is for the castle or the town- like the statues and stuff." Yuuri sighed. "I liked the gifts you, Gwen and Wolf got me more."

That made Conrad meet Yuuri's eyes with a fond smile. "Mother always liked the gifts we got her more as well."

They shared a quiet moment, just smiling at each other- before Yuuri blushed and dug randomly into a box, trying to distract himself from the heat rising on his face.

"Ooohh- Conrad, look at this one! It's a mask." Yuuri pulled out a heavy clay mask that looked.. well..

"Yeesh this thing is creepy-! It makes Morgif look handsome."

Somewhere far away- the sword sneezed and moaned sadly.

"Let me see?" Conrad asked and Yuuri turned it towards his godfather so the man could get a better look.

"You're right- it is ghastly... Who is it from?"

"Errr... it doesn't say." that made Conrad uneasy as he held out his hands to take the mask and inspect it himself.

"Sorry, Yuuri, may I hold it for a moment?"

"Put it on! I want to see what you look like while wearing it-"

"Ah, I would like to see it first."

"Aw, comon Conrad- please? Never mind, it's okay! I'll wear it- is there a mirror in here?"

"Wait, Yuuri." Conrad held a hand out to stop Yuuri from putting it on. "I'll wear it."

"Really? Okay, okay- hold on.."

Yuuri inched forwards, moving boxes and gifts out of the way so he could get closer and help tie the mask on his knight's face. He didn't notice how tense Conrad was or how the man looked at the mask in great detail as Yuuri sat on his heels to adjust it on Conrad's head.

"There!" He said with triumph, taking a moment to look Conrad over slowly from head-to-toe.

" _Wooooaahhh_ you look really scary, Conrad..." Yuuri couldn't see the man's mouth, but by the way his eyes were squinted through the holes in the mask, he could tell Conrad was smiling.

"Boo."

"Hey! Don't do that-!" the king laughed, getting to his feet. "Let me see if I can find a mirror so you can see yourself." However, just as Yuuri turned away a low rumble came across the sky which had become an inky-black. The windows shuddered as the mask began to glow a soft white color.

Yuuri gasped, pausing momentarily to look out the window.

"The storm must be getting really bad- it's so dark outside.." When he didn't hear Conrad reply he turned around, looking for the man.

"Conrad?"

When he looked back he saw Conrad standing unsteadily in the middle of the room, wearing the mask, both hands cradling his eyes. In a flash of lightening he fell to the floor, causing the mask to smash into a million pieces as Conrad fainted.

 _"CONRAD!"_


	2. Chapter 2

Yuuri waited impatiently outside of the medical ward, alongside Gwendal, Wolfram and Annissina.

"Stop pacing, wimp."

"I can't! Who knows what kind of evil curse that stupid mask had!? Is Ken here yet?"

"The storm is probably keeping Geika at the shrine your majesty." Annissina cut in. What was left of the mask lay in a box in her lap, she had been inspecting them herself but nothing had come of it.

"You said the mask glowed- did it do anything else?" Gwendal asked and Yuuri shook his head.

"N-no.. But Conrad didn't want to wear it at first... I'm so stupid to make him wear it."

"You're not stupid, but you are a wimp. If you had worn it who knows what could have happened. Weller isn't like you... He'll be fine." Wolfram huffed, crossing his arms.

Yuuri wasn't fooled, he knew his ex-fiance well. Wolfram's eyes were deeply troubled.

They all sat in silence, listening to the rain pelt the castle's tall windows, time slowed and it seemed like an eternity before Gisela finally opened the door to the medical ward.

She looked tired and confused.

"Yuuri Heika, Conrart wasn't with anyone else when the accident happened, correct?"

"No, it was just me and him."

Gisela nodded sullenly, her eyes met his with a troubled stare.

"I think... he may be possessed."

There was a collective gasp from the group which was abruptly cut off when a soaking wet Ken Murata and Gunter Von Kliest suddenly entered the hall from around the corner.

"He's _not_ possessed, though I understand why you would think that."

"There you are!" Yuuri sighed with relief. His wise-man Ken was always able to make sense of sticky situations like this.

"What do you mean? Why would we think he's possessed?" Yuuri asked, as Gunter came closer. He could tell the man wanted to greet him, but stayed silent. It was never a good sign if Gunter was silent upon seeing him.

"Yuuri, do you have the mask?" Ken asked and Yuuri shook his head, "It's broken- Annissina has it."

"Here you are Geika," the inventor handed over the box of clay pieces with ease, knowing she wasn't of any use when it came to something like this. After a long moment of Ken pawing through the box an uneasy feeling fell on the group when they heard Ken chuckle.

"I-I'm sorry, it's just... this is such good and bad news. This mask really could have had a much worse affect, there are dangerous artifacts in this land and when you described the mask I thought it was something far more sinister and irreversible. But, this... Well..."

"Will Conrad be okay?" Yuuri got right to the point, as per usual.

"Yes... and no. It depends if the other masks are still around and in one piece. This mask is one of three. Shibuya, do you remember the old Japanese saying about the three faces?"

"Err.." the group looked at Yuuri questioningly, but he could only shake his head _'no'._

"Well, the saying goes that everyone has three faces: one they show to the world, one they only show to their loved ones, and one they never show to anyone. The third face is said to be their truest self."

"Go on." Gwendal said, his arms also crossed, hugging his chest in a comforting manner.

"This mask is the third mask out of a group of three. I recognized it immediately and I'm sure Lord von Kleist did too. They were rather notorious for causing trouble a long time ago before they went missing. Gunter, can you help me explain? My memory is a bit hazy..."

"Of course Geika," the scholar cleared his throat and began to share his knowledge on the subject.

"If you are correct, I believe these are the Dreidra masks. There are three masks in total, crafted by Deidran priests from the country of Drei, which is now the country of Conanshia- which, as you know, Svelera used to be part of Conanshia before they gained independence through civil war. These masks represent and present different parts of a person's inner spirit. The Mask of Eins, The Mask of Zwei and finally The Mask of Drei. The soul of whoever wears these will be split by the mask worn."

There was silence as everyone waited for Gunter to continue. When he didn't, Ken cleared his throat and filled everyone in.

"So, in other words, there's three masks and their affects are simple: the victim's soul will show only the side of them that the mask represents. So, since this is the third mask- Conrad is only his truest self right now. In order to fix this, I believe he needs to wear the other two masks. I think there's more to the story but that's all I can remember right now so..."

 _"That's not possible!"_

The group was started out of their deep thought by Gisela's shrill cry.

"That's not the Deidra mask, because Conrart isn't his truest self at all! H-he's just not!"

"What do you mean by his _truest self?_ " Annissina asked the sage quietly but before anyone could answer a loud crash of broken glass was heard within the ward. Gwendal stepped boldly forward and opened the doors. He was greeted by a floor covered in glass and Conrart standing beside a broken window, the rain pouring inwards.

"Conrad!" Yuuri paid no heed to the situation at all and stepped right past Gwendal and approached his godfather directly, his subordinates followed closely behind.

"Conrad, are you alright...?"

Conrad turned slowly looking disoriented, his right hand was bleeding. He'd apparently punched the window out.

 _"What did you call me...?"_

"C...Conrad?"

Yuuri was slightly taken aback by how frightening Conrad looked with cold eyes and wild hair, his features were set into hard lines.

Never before had such an angry look from his godfather been directed at _him._

"My name is **_Conrart._** "


	3. Chapter 3

Conrad was a fiercely loyal friend with a kind heart and a warm smile.

He was chivalrous, brave, handsome and arguably Yuuri's favorite person in both worlds. He wasn't too shy to admit to himself that he loved the man in more ways than one.

Except for right now.

Other than handsome, Conrad was currently none of those things.

It had been 3 days since The Mask of Drei had taken it's hold on Conrad and everyone's priorities had changed completely overnight because of it.

They NEEDED to find the other two masks **pronto** because living with Conrad's _'truest self'_ was just...

Yuuri looked over at the man in question who was sitting next to him in the royal carriage as it bumped it's way along the road to Svelera. Yozak had caught wind of a rumor that the masks were shipped to different kingdoms and the best place to start was Svelera: where they suspected the 'birthday' mask came from. They were currently on their way to find out more information.

Hopefully the other two masks were in one piece, or Conrad might never change back.

Yuuri was alone in the carriage with Conrad because he was the only one who could tolerate being with the man. Everyone else couldn't stand to be around _"Anti-Conrad,"_ as Wolfram had now dubbed him.

Anti-Conrad was just like normal Conrad only... he wasn't. At all.

Yuuri couldn't help but think back to the dinner two nights ago, where they had all sat down and discovered the true extent of the damage the mask had done.

* * *

 _Once Conrad had been bandaged up, the group had decided to sit down around the dinner table and discuss their plan of action. Everyone was present save for Yozak. Conrad appeared to be normal, save for his indifferent, almost angry expression._

 _The food hadn't even been served yet and the man was already into his second glass of wine when The Great Wise Man- Murata Ken, spoke up._

 _"Now, as you all know, we have an incident on our hands where an unknown country has sent Yuuri a dangerous item disguised as a birthday present. I know it may seem harmless, since all you currently see is a change in Lord Weller's behavior. But please understand, that mask is dangerous. If we do not locate the other two masks, aside from Lord Weller not returning to normal, he will eventually die. It'll take a long time- but uh, that's sort of what I meant by 'good and bad' news..."_

 _"What!? MURATA! Why didn't you say this earlier!?" Yuuri shrieked, causing Wolfram to grab Yuuri's hand to still him. "It's alright, Yuuri! Stay calm and listen for a moment. Lord Weller isn't going anywhere." Yuuri took a breath and let Wolfram pull him back into his seat. "A-alright... explain, please!"_

 _Ken nodded and looked at Gunter who cleared his throat._

 _"That is correct," Gunter nodded in agreement. "When the mask affected Conrart, what it was really doing was sealing away two thirds of his soul within the other masks. If, Shinou forbid, this had happened to Yuuri-heika instead, not only would he have been unable to use his Maoh powers, but he would have been at a high risk for assassination: because should the other masks be destroyed, he would have died from the affects."_

 _"We'll find whoever sent this to his majesty," Conrart cut in, downing the rest of his drink and going for a third. "-and deal with them.. But I don't see the point in finding the other masks for my sake. I've already told you- several times- the mask didn't affect me because of my human blood. I've been this way my entire life."_

 _Everyone was silent- a mixture of different emotions on their faces._

 _Celi's face was the easiest to recognize clearly: she simply looked pained._ _"Oh Conrart, my sweet boy. You don't realize it- but you weren't like this before. You were happier then you are now."_

 _"Only I **wasn't** , mother." Conrart's eyes met hers in a cold gaze._

 _Gwendal's fist tightened under the table but before he could correct his little brother's tone, Ken interrupted once more. "Ahem, Lord Weller- you're correct and incorrect at the same time. You've always been like this, possibly for years, but you had other parts to you. Parts that people knew as you far more than the 'real' you which is.. well, what you are now."_

 _"I fail to see what the problem is, then." Conrart raised his voice, something Yuuri had only heard a handful of times in the 4 years he'd known the man. "If I'm currently the 'real' me, what's so fucking wrong with that? Is the way I am wrong?" His tone was challenging and Yuuri was the only one who felt comfortable enough to reply._

 _"Conra-r-t" Yuuri forced his tongue to work, but it still came out butchered. "It's not that we don't like you the way you are, it's just that I miss the old you- the you that would play baseball with me and tell me bad puns, y-you know?"_

 _"Oh, I'm sorry for not giving you what you want, your majesty. How I feel doesn't apply, does it? Lets go get the masks so we can fix my awful behavior so I won't be a burden to you anymore. I was much more enjoyable when all I did was smile, right?"_

 _"You WERE more enjoyable!" Wolfram blurted out, his face red from holding back his anger, "How can you speak to Yuuri like that!? I don't care what you're feeling, don't you DARE speak to him like that again!"_

 _"Wolf, it's not his fault! It's mine for making him wear the mask in the first place so please don't yell at him." Yuuri tried to diffuse the situation but he could see the darkness that had settled deep in Conrart's eyes. "That's truly no surprise coming from my darling little brother, is it? Now, if you'll excuse me..."_

 _With that, Conrart stood and grabbed what was left of the wine before bowing deeply, a false smile stretched across his face. "I'm always glad to be of service." With that, he turned and sauntered slowly towards the exit, drinking from the bottle in his hand._ _Gwendal was hot on his heels, but Yuuri stopped his stoic adviser before he could reach the younger man. It took a lot of convincing but Gwendal and the others finally agreed to let Yuuri talk to Conrad alone for a while._

 _They knew Conrad wouldn't physically hurt Yuuri, but emotionally was a different story._

 _Yuuri was vulnerable when it came to Conrad and everyone knew it except for Yuuri himself._

 _When Yuuri finally found Conrad, he was sitting alone on a small balcony tucked away in the corner of the castle. The man's favorite star-gazing spot, if Yuuri remembered correctly._

 _"Conrad.."_

 _" **Conrart**. It's not that fucking hard, is it?"_

 _Yuuri had been approaching him slowly when he stopped dead in his tracks as if he'd been slapped in the face._ _"C-Conr-a-r-t. Sorry, I'm just not use to saying it... that's all."_

 _Conrad closed his eyes. "I know."_

 _Yuuri finally got close enough to sit next to the man who seemed indifferent to his presence. They sat like that for a long time before Conrad spoke._

 _"You probably hate me, now that I can't hide who I really am."_

 _"I can't hate you." Yuuri gasped._

 _Conrad chuckled, only... it wasn't warm, it was cold and empty._

 _"Just give it time, Yuu-ri."_

* * *

Just give it time? Impossible!

He couldn't hate Conrad! Yuuri loved the man too much. From that moment on, Yuuri promised himself that no matter what, he would keep his anger in check. He was determined to prove Conrad wrong. However, keeping in check was proving increasingly difficult as the days stretched on.

"It's so hot out.." Yuuri sighed, trying to ease Conrad into conversation, but the man didn't even bat an eye. He simply sat there, staring with a dead-gaze out into the distance beyond the carriage window. "Aren't you overheated?" Yuuri tried a direct question this time.

He was met with a horribly long silence which was finally broken by Conrad's short, muffled reply.

"No."

The carriage ride was going to be another six hours and Yuuri could **not** handle another six hours of this. It had been _days_ since Conrad had spoken to him directly. It was... hurtful. He couldn't help but admit he missed the ease of conversation which they use to share.

" _Conra-r-t_." he could see the man tense up from the mispronunciation of his name. "I've been wondering... why won't you talk to me?" Yuuri hated being direct like this but he couldn't help it. This earned him a long sigh as Conrart shifted in his seat.

"What would you like to talk about, majesty?"

"Please, answer my question first." Yuuri's heart seized in his chest from speaking so sternly with his knight.

"What if I told you that I'm tired, I'm in pain, and I don't want to talk to you. Would that sate your curiosity?" the man snapped and Yuuri visibly flinched as his face began to heat up. "Y-you're in pain?" Yuuri asked, trying to keep his anger from flaring. Had the mask injured the other man?

"Yes." he barked and Yuuri carefully shifted closer to him. "I want to help..." he said weakly, placing his hand, hot and sweaty on Conrad's knee. "Where does it hurt?" Conrad's eyes darted between Yuuri's hand and the boy's face. He was about to tell the truth: about how practically everything hurt, all the time. Old injuries that never quite healed correctly caused him to ache constantly but... something about Yuuri's pure, innocent eyes made Conrad smile wickedly as he leaned towards the younger man, placing his face within inches of his king's.

Yuuri's breath stilled in his chest as Conrad leaned in close, their foreheads almost touching. "It hurts here," he said softly, taking Yuuri's hand and placing it higher and higher up on his hips until it was touching his... his...

Yuuri flinched back so quickly and violently that his back collided with the opposite side of the carriage as Conrad roared in laughter. "Ahaha!" he laughed, pointing at the younger man, "You should see your face!" he barked, slapping his knee with one hand, his expression lecherous and mean yet the man seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself.

"S-stop the carriage!" Yuuri shrieked as the driver immediately slowed down, bringing the carriage to a screeching halt so Yuuri could escape the confined space. Wolfram was shocked to see Yuuri stumble out of the carriage in a frantic panic, landing in the dirt. "Yuuri! What is it, what's wrong!?" Wolfram said, steering his horse close to the carriage and dismounting to attend to his frightened ex-fiance. "What did he do!?" the blond demanded and Yuuri was suddenly brought back to his senses.

He couldn't blame Conrad, the man was sick. This was Yuuri's fault, not his.

"A-aha..." Yuuri stammered, slowly getting up and dusting himself off as he glanced back into the carriage at the man's calm, smiling face. Though his smile was far from warm or kind. "I'm fine." he insisted, shaking his head. "I just got a little o-overheated..." _Conrart's_ snicker wasn't lost on Yuuri. "H-How long until we reach the capitol?" he asked, trying to distract the intense glaring match going on between Wolfram and Conrad.

"At least four more hours." Wolfram said, dusting Yuuri off himself. "Are you sure you don't want to ride with me, Yuuri?" he asked and Yuuri blushed, shaking his head fiercely. "N-no, it's fine..." Yuuri couldn't help but feel guilty about potentially leaving Conrad by himself. He didn't want the man to think Yuuri didn't want to be around him or that no one cared enough about him to share the same space with him when he was going through this hard time.

He stubbornly ignored the concerned looks his subordinates were giving him as he took his time, drinking from a canister of water to rejuvenate himself. _'They're being selfish and inconsiderate for treating Conrad like a stranger.'_ he thought resolutely as he stubbornly climbed back into the carriage with Conrad and it set off once more.

"I won't let you scare me away." Yuuri said firmly once the doors were shut. Conrad simply laughed. "Did you not just leap from the carriage in fear?" he asked and Yuuri's face turned bright red. _"W-why did you do that?"_ he managed to ask breathlessly, trying to sink as far into the seat as it would allow.

"I wanted to see your reaction." he said honestly with a small shrug which only served to deepen Yuuri's blush even more.

They didn't speak for the rest of the journey into Svelera.


	4. Chapter 4

Once the group had finally made it to the desert town, Yuuri was amazed at how different it looked compared to the last time he'd visited.

Svelera had been going through a drought the last time he'd been here due to the mining (by slave labor) of esoteric stones. The people had been starving and all the plants had died, leaving no food for the cattle. It had been a hot, dismal place. Not to mention all the young women in Svelera ran away to Hildyard- many becoming prostitutes so they could send money back home.

His last visit hadn't been a great experience, to put it lightly.

Thankfully, ever since Yuuri had called rain to the desert using the Mateki- things had vastly improved, so much so the young king could hardly believe he was in the same place. "Wooow, look at all the greenery!" Yuuri said with a huge smile, the sandy wasteland had become a desert utopia with lush palm trees and grassy sand dunes- complete with occasional pools of natural spring water.

"It's amazing..." Hube said, his eye softening at the sight of the land where he once hid the demon flute.

"I wonder how Norika and Jilta are doing..." the king said aloud as the group traversed the city's crowded, colorful market place.

The air was hot, but a refreshing breeze cut occasionally through the dense streets making the temperature bearable. Yuuri peered over at his godfather who lagged a few steps behind the group. Usually if Conrad wasn't occupied with conversation he'd be sporting one of two default expressions: a calm smile or a neutral frown.

This time, the man looked openly bored as he stared with squinted eyes, listlessly into the desert sun.

Stopping in the center of the town near a large fountain where children were busy playing, the group (consisting of Yuuri, Wolfram, Anti-Conrad, Hube, Yozak, Murata and Gunter) huddled together to discuss their course of action.

"Alright, Shibuya." Murata said, pushing a hand through his blonde-dyed hair. "I think we should all split up. Lord von Kleist and I are going to head to the emperor's palace to ask if they know anything about the mask- it's best to be direct and see if they'll be honest before snooping." the group nodded in agreement.

"Yuuri's staying with me. I refuse to work with _Anti-Conrad_ so he'll just have to be in a separate group." Wolfram said firmly, making Yuuri flush red in anger- they hadn't even been in the damn capitol for three minutes and the blonde was already starting to irritate him! "That's not your decision to make!" Yuuri growled, "I'm sticking with Conrad, so you'll have to either deal with it or go in another group yourself!"

" _Oh my god,_ " the brunette replied with a forced American accent, emphasizing his words like a valley girl, "For the last time, it's **Conrart** and I don't want to be around either of you." he snapped, eyeing the teenagers with a heated expression. "How's that for you?"

Both boys were left speechless until Wolfram slowly grinned. "See? So Yuuri's coming with me." The pain was real as Yuuri stared at Conrad with a hurt expression. His knight didn't want to be around him? Why!? Yuuri hadn't even done anything to upset the man! If anything, after the man's stunt in the carriage, he should be the one wanting space!

"Alright, guess that leaves the captain, Hube and myself." Yozak said. "Personally I feel like all three of us together is a serious overkill of man-power so Hube, if would like to pair up with Wolfram and his majesty..."

"Let's go, Yuuri!" Wolfram ground out, dragging his ex-fiance by the arm away from the group.

"Where exactly are you going, Lord von Bielefelt?" Murata asked, curious as to what the pair would be investigating. "We're going to the square to talk to civilians, obviously! Isn't all of this straight-forward!?" the blonde snapped as Yuuri squawked in protest- until he was finally dragged out of sight.

"Well, that settles that... Hube, Conrart, Yozak- since you do have more man power, maybe you should explore the more seedy parts of the city and see if you can find anything out of place. If you happen to find the underground market that's hidden there- they might have a lead on our masks." Murata said, before departing with Gunter in tow.

The three men stood in silence for a moment before Yozak draped a muscular arm over Conrad's shoulders, smiling lazily. "Alright Captain," the man drawled, winking at Hube, "Let's have some fun!" Conrad shook his shoulder, trying to dislodge the limb to no avail. "Dear Shinou, I hate when you lean on me." he grit out, rolling his eyes and pushing the red-head away.

"I know how to get to the Eastern district." Hube said, avoiding Conrart's cold gaze. "It's where the brothels are among... _other establishments._ " The quirk of Conrad's lips and the slight sparkle in his eye at Hube's words wasn't lost on Yozak. He recognized that look from Conrad's younger years- when the man use to be more interested in danger.

"Lead the way, one-eyed wonder." Conrart said with a grin, delighting in the way his words made Hube uncomfortable as they made their way through the bustling streets.

* * *

Yuuri's initial good mood had plummeted so low it minus well have been in a grave as he was dragged from one antique stall to the next, listening to Wolfram berate the shop keepers. "Oi! Have you seen this mask!?" Wolfram would ask, shoving a drawing of the item in each shop-keepers face, only to be turned away or asked if he happened to be single or not.

"This is pointless," Wolfram snarled as they left yet another stall. "They're too interested in your good looks to even look at the drawing."

"My good looks? You're the one they keep hitting on!" Yuuri groaned. "Also it's not us at all- your stupid drawing doesn't even look anything like the mask."

"What!? Are you blind? It looks exactly like the mask!" Wolfram insisted, holding the drawing up as if to demonstrate a point.

"I see a bat... no, maybe a butterfly." Yuuri said, as if taking an ink-blot test in a psychiatrist's office. "Maybe we should visit Norika for a bit and ask her if she's noticed anything weird..."

"You just want to see her, cheater." Wolfram snapped and Yuuri fought the urge to scream. "How am I a cheater!? We're not even together anymore, Wolfram!" the urge had won.

Wolfram stuck his nose up in the air. "Hrphm... once a cheater always a cheater." he quipped, making Yuuri rub his face out of frustration. "This is why I can't be in a relationship with you- you get on my nerves too much." he sighed.

"That's not the reason we're not together and you know it." Wolfram spat, stomping on Yuuri's foot.

"Ow! That, and you're always hurting me!" he shouted, "Being with you is nothing but pain!"

"So is being with you." Wolfram replied, bristling.

Yuuri deflated meekly at that because he knew it was the truth. Wolfram had feelings for him that Yuuri couldn't reciprocate- because of this, (and his own stubbornness) he'd caused his friend pain for years. "W-well..." Yuuri replied, "What other reason is there...?"

Wolfram narrowed his eyes at his king. "Are you serious? What other reason could there be that we're not together, Yuuri-?"

"Err... We got together too young...? Or because you insulted my mother..."

"No, you dolt!" He shouted, "You're in love with my brother!" Wolfram then crumpled the drawing in his fist and threw it at Yuuri's head.

"W-what!?" Yuuri screeched- _how on Earth did Wolfram know that!?_

"Auurrgghh!" The blonde growled, stomping away from the other boy in large strides.

"W-Wolfram, where are you going!?" Yuuri cried, trailing after him. "To find a restroom!" Wolfram said, easing the tension in Yuuri's shoulders as he caught up with the blonde, gripping onto the boy's sleeve so they wouldn't get separated in amidst the crowd.

* * *

The palace sat in the center of the capitol, white and gleaming. It's polished stone walls rose high above the squatted structures made of sand and packed mud that were common place in the desert town. Gunter and Murata stood near the main gates, conversing in low tones while eyeing the guards stationed there.

"Highness," Gunter placed a hand on Murata's shoulder, hovering close to the wise-man. "We're not sure our correspondence has reached Svelera's Emperor before our arrival... If they did receive our letters, they haven't responded. How would you like to approach?"

Ken's glasses glinted in the sunlight.

"Well, ever since I heard that we were heading into Svelera I decided to bring the Mateki." Ken said, patting his cloak where the flute was concealed. "Perhaps Shibuya is rubbing off on me, but... I was hoping we could just be honest, and tell them I'm the Great Sage... They're indebted to the Maoh for saving their livelihoods so maybe they'll be willing to meet with us on such short notice."

"Shin Makoku is currently neutral with Svelera." Gunter mused, "They have no reason to be hostile towards us..." the instructor gripped the hilt of his sword, bowing his head. "However, should they show any signs of hostility, I shall protect you with my life." he said, placing a hand over his heart.

"Haa~ thanks!" Murata grinned, scrubbing his hair sheepishly. "You're really a reliable guy- it's why I decided to have you accompany me, Lord von Kleist." the teenager beamed, giving the man a thumbs-up. "H-highness...?" Gunter said faintly, blinking owlishly. He simply hadn't expected such a juvenile response from the sage... though he supposed that was his own fault- he often forgot the wise man's true age.

He followed closely behind the boy as he approached the burly guards stationed at the entrance to the palace.

"Good afternoon, gentleman!" Murata chirped as he approached them. "I don't suppose you can assist us in seeing the emperor?" he asked, pulling the Mateki from his cloak and presenting it to the men. "We're ambassadors from Shin Makoku here for an urgent matter and we'd like to ask the emperor for assistance."

"Shin Makoku?" the guard said skeptically. "Is that... a flute...?" he eyed the flute suspiciously, seemingly unsure of what it was.

"Yes, it's the demon flute the Maoh used to bring rain to Svelera."

"Than who are you suppose to be?" the guard said, taking note of the boy's lack of black hair.

"I'm not the Maoh," Ken said honestly, scratching his head. "I'm the Great Sage- I'm his peer." The guards shared a moment of silence and a series of looks- before bursting out laughing. "We're not going to let you see the emperor." the guard laughed, shaking his head. "Get lost, kid. Don't make us create a scene."

"Ahh... how can we prove it to you?" Murata said with a frown.

"Ambassadors send letters, wait for correspondence and then organize an audience with the emperor. Why don't you start there if you're truly who you say you are."

"As I've said before, we're sort of here on short notice..." Ken said before Gunter politely stepped forward, pulling a medallion out of his cloak. "My name is Lord von Kleist." he said, "This is the emblem of my house. Can you take this and the demon flute to the emperor... So they may decide if they'll hold an audience with us?"

"No, pretty-boy." the guard said roughly, stepping forward to tower over the slender man. "Do you know how many people bring gifts to this gate for the emperor? We're not going to bring random items in on a whim. Now, I'm not going to say it again-"

"What if I play the flute?" Ken said, taking a step forward. "I'm not the Maoh, but I am the only other one with the power to play the flute and call upon the rain. If I make it rain... will you kindly reconsider?" Ken knew it wasn't a good idea to randomly change the weather in an area just because he could- but it was his last resort before they would have to find a way to break into the palace on their own.

"Go for it." one of the guards said with a laugh. "There's not a damn cloud in the sky- if you can make it rain, then we'll at least let the emperor know you're here." Ken nodded as he took the flute out of its container and carefully assembled it before placing it to his lips. Gunter watched in amazement as the boy took a breath and began to play a melody the man had never heard before.

He played hot-cross-buns rather pathetically on the flute before pausing, looking up at the sky and holding out his hand to feel for rain. After several minutes of nothing but hot, dry air and awkward silence the guards began to chuckle darkly.

"Ah... see? This is why we don't bring random items to the emperor. What a waste of time."

Ken sighed, giving Gunter an apologetic look before bowing to the guards. "You're right... I'm truly sorry to have wasted your time." he said slowly, sincerity in his voice. "We'll be going now." looping his hand through Gunter's arm, Ken turned away from the gates.

Gunter looked like he wanted to protest but he shook his head.

They would just have to find another way.

 _Drip._

A single drop of water hit the tip of Gunter's slender nose, making the lavender haired man flinch and reflectively look up at the sky.

The sound of thunder made Ken gasp.

Within the blink of an eye the sky suddenly grew so dark it was as if it had become evening- dark clouds swirled overhead. Ken, Gunter and the guards watched in amazement as rain began to pour down in sheets, as if the heavens themselves had opened their flood gates.

Drenched within moments, Ken turned back and waved at the guards who looked awe-struck, jaws hanging open.

"Such nice weather we're having!" he called back to them through the downpour, grinning widely.

* * *

Hube had many regrets from a life long lived in vain... but his current biggest regret was not following Wolfram and his majesty when he'd had the chance.

Laying on his back in the dirt, Hube looked up through one bleary eye at Conrart- who stood above him, chest heaving.

They hadn't even made it an hour before their conversations began to go horribly awry. It finally reached the point where Conrart had snapped- punching him right in the face. He'd hadn't stopped there though, the usually calm-tempered man continued hitting him until Hube was knocked down flat in the street.

"What is this, _the airing of the grievances!?_ Give it a rest, Capt'n!" Yozak groaned as he physically held the other man back from mercilessly wailing on the fallen man. "Let go of me, Yozak!" he barked, twisting in his arms. "I never got the chance to thank him!" Conrart grit out, "For sending me to the chopping block- now we can make even!"

"What, by chopping him to bits?" Yozak asked sarcastically as he wrestled the man's sword from him- barely able to succeed as Conrart landed a kick to the spy's groin. "It'd be a start!" Conrart said, escaping from the man and staggering a few steps away.

Hube closed his lone eye. He had Nicola and his son Ernst to fight for... but his will and energy to fight Lord Weller escaped him as he took measured breaths, laying still. After a few moments Hube was surprised when he hadn't been stabbed- instead he could hear a heated scuffle going on several feet away.

Opening his eye, he gasped as he saw Yozak and Conrart fighting each other instead.

"YOU FUCKING ASSWIPE, you hit me in the nuts!" Yozak hissed, throwing himself at his slender counterpart. "What happened to our rule about no-hit zones!?"

"Sorry, I confused them with your face." Conrart grunted, as he dodged Yozak's blows before the red-head charged him- tackling him with brute force into the dirt. Once the brunette was on the ground, it was all over. Yozak wailed on him relentlessly as Hube could only watch in fascination and horror. Conrart was a very strong man- to see him pinned so effectively by the spy was nothing short of amazing.

Hube couldn't remember Conrart ever losing in a fight against Yozak.

Realization began to dawn on him as the scene continued to unfold. All those times... the spy must have held back, never using his full strength against his childhood friend. Which meant Yozak must highly respect the captain.

And Hube was right, he just didn't know the full extent of it.

Yozak adored Conrart.

Aside from their usual rough and tumbles and occasional fisticuffs Yozak never truly wanted to hurt the man. He'd been protecting and loving his friend since day one- regardless if Yozak wasn't as important to Conrad as he was to Yozak.

Not to mention he tried to go easy because actually hurting Conrart meant Gwendal would definitely get him back later on.

But this time, Conrart wasn't his usual goofy self who could listen to reason- he was being an absolute menace with a seemingly limited conscious. Yozak saw beating some sense into him as a way of protecting the man from his own bad choices. However, he stopped short of knocking his friend unconscious- not wanting to carry him the rest of the day.

Hube was in shock as Yozak stood, dusting off his knees and offering a hand to the older man, pulling him to his feet. "I'm sorry-" Hube began to say, but Yozak waved a dismissive hand.

"Don't be." the spy said firmly. "You wouldn't believe it, by how polite he is and the way he smiles these days- but he use to get like this sometimes, years ago. No one's use to how he's acting right now but..." he sighed softly as Conrart groaned, curling onto his side, holding his abdomen and breathing deeply.

"He use to be kind of an asshole... sometimes."

 _'With (sort of) good reason.'_ Yozak tacked on in his head, trying not to look at the man on the ground.

"Th-thank you... but he was justified..." Hube said quietly, guilt actively feasting on his insides.

"Yeah, but _it's been years already-_ I'm tired of hearing about it! Bad shit happens to good people, it's time to move on. Conrart just really loves reliving his pain over and over again, wallowing in it. It honestly pisses me off to no end." he ground out, picking the man's sword off the ground.

"It's not all bad though-" the spy smiled ruefully, patting Hube on the shoulder. "The Conrad we know- you know, before all this mask-nonsense is trying to put the past behind him and he has forgiven you." Hube wasn't so sure about that... wasn't this suppose to be Conrart's truest self? The man without his social or status filters?

If so- the brunette clearly hadn't forgiven him as much as he'd fooled everyone to believe.

"You..." Conrart coughed into the sand, attempting to get to his feet. "Hit my scar..." he wheezed again causing guilt to flood Yozak full force as his shoulders slumped. He knew he'd played dirty, hitting a spot that had once been a major wound on the man. The long scar across Conrart's right hip was all that was left of a massive injury he'd sustained from the war.

Yozak knew the spot (where the man's kidney had been damaged) still ached and sometimes forced Conrart to be immobile if he happened to pull it the wrong way- yet he'd hit him there anyway.

"You're going to make me piss blood." Conrart complained breathlessly. "Are you _happy now?_ "

"Am **I** happy now?" Yozak said with disbelief, coming close so he could pull the lighter man to his feet. "You were the one _throwing chickens before they hatch,_ captain."

" _Stones,_ not chickens you idiot." Conrart groaned. "It's an Earth proverb: _'throwing stones in a glass house.'_ You don't even know the words you're scolding me with."

"Whatever! I can't remember every Earth detail, I've never even been to the damn place!"

"Gentleman-" Hube said, interrupting the men and grabbing Yozak's arm. "Look-! Isn't that...?"

Both men turned to look at what appeared to be a poster painted on the side of a theater- bearing a drawing of a familiar mask.

The mask of Drei.

"Well, would you look at that." Yozak said in amazement as he studied the poster- which looked to be an advertisement for a play.

Just then, thunder rolled across the city as all three men gave each other confused looks- their confusion didn't last long before there was a sudden darkening of the sky followed by a downpour of rain.

"That had better not be Yuuri." Conrart grit out angrily, limping. "It rains when he uses his maryoku."

"We should check that out." Yozak sighed. "Just to make sure the kid's okay. Hube- will you investigate this theater while we go find his majesty?"

"Of course," Hube replied with a bow of his head.

Yozak then turned to face Conrad. "We should split up Captain- we'll find him quicker." Conrart nodded, wincing. "If you find him first bring him back to the theater." the brunette said before turning and slowly limping down the road they'd just came from as Yozak heading North towards the palace.

Turning back to the theater, Hube made his way inside where it was dark and smelled of Earth and rust.

* * *

Yuuri sat outside an outhouse waiting for Wolfram.

Nearby was a water trough for horses, along with a well and a dilapidated shack. "Wolf, will you hurry up?" Yuuri groaned- there was no shade near the outhouse and Yuuri was sweating horribly as he took his cloak off and fanned his face with his hands.

 _"Just give me a second!"_

Yuuri sighed before sitting on the ground and resting his back against the side of the structure. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to focus on anything but the heat when he heard small, quick footsteps approaching the well about 20 feet ahead of him. Cracking his dry eyes he watched a young boy wearing a tattered cloak and shorts approaching the well.

He was holding a stick and a bucket, setting the latter down before he began to pull on the ropes, raising water from the pit. Once he'd filled the bucket with water he turned around, intent on leaving with it.

However, as soon as the boy turned around Yuuri's eyes bulged out of his head as he gaped in awe and shock. The kid was wearing the mask-! Like, THE MASK that Wolfram had drawn- the one that had affected Conrad...!

"H-hey!" Yuuri shouted, scrambling to his feet. "Where did you get that!?" he asked, pointing at the mask that covered the boy's entire face. "That mask-"

The boy dropped the bucket he'd been carrying as it clattered to the ground, spilling water upon the cracked earth. They stared at each other in silence for a moment, before the boy took a single step backwards...

"Wait-!"

Before he could get a response, the boy quickly turned on his heel and fled.

"Hey!"

He shouted before cursing and chasing after the child without a second thought.

* * *

"Yuuri...?" Wolfram exited the bathroom, glancing around the deserted lot.

He'd heard the idiot saying something but hadn't been able to make out what it was. However upon exiting the stall he was met with no sign of the boy king- only an empty lot and an abandoned bucket. After thoroughly searching the area, (including checking to see if Yuuri had fallen into the well...) Wolfram began to panic.

"Yuuri!" he shouted, hearing nothing. "Damnit! You couldn't sit still for five minutes!?" the boy cursed, worry creeping into his voice.

The blonde suddenly gasped as he heard a roll of thunder come across the sky as clouds swirled overhead, blotting out the sun. He didn't even have a moment to think before rain began to pour down in sheets, drenching everything within its reach. "Yuuri!" Wolfram shouted, looking up- expecting to see the Maoh...

Yet... he heard and saw nothing.

So, Wolfram did the only thing he could do- he ran into the city, searching for Yuuri or anyone else from his group- cursing his own stupidity.

* * *

No amount of jogging with Conrad could've prepared Yuuri for just how fast this kid was.

To make matters worse the kid appeared to know the streets well- it took everything Yuuri had just to keep him in his line of sight as they made their way deeper and deeper within the city. He was so focused on his target that he barely even noticed when thunder clattered across the sky- until the rain was coming down in sheets, making his hair dye run into his face. This made him temporarily lose sight of the boy as he had to stop and wipe his eyes.

"Damn!" he cursed, slicking his hair back with his hands. "He's so fast...!"

Picking up his pace once more, now following the boy's barely audible foot steps, Yuuri rounded a corner and slammed head-first into someone, sending them both to the ground.

Relief flooded through him when he realized it was none other than Conrad.

"Conrad!" Yuuri cried, smiling. "Thank goodness it's you- I found a mask! Comon, we have to go-" but the boy couldn't finish his sentence because his breath was stolen from his chest as Conrad's large hands roughly grabbed the front of his uniform, hauling him to his feet.

"What the hell are you doing!?" Conrad growled, his face inches from his own, "Where's Wolfram!?"

Yuuri was shocked at first- not sure why Conrad cared about where Wolfram was when there was a mask nearby- before realization slowly sank in causing his face to pale.

He'd left Wolfram behind in his mad dash to catch the kid with the mask...

"I-I a-ah..." Yuuri stuttered, "I ran off w-without him, because I-"

"You've gotta be kidding me." The older man hissed, releasing Yuuri. "Did you cause the rain?"

"No- we have to go now! That kid has one of the masks-!"

"I don't give a damn about the masks, Yuuri!" the man shouted at his godson. "You're running through the streets of a foreign country unsupervised- you have no weapon, no way of calling for help- you didn't even tell Wolfram where you were going! You always do this stupid, immature bullshit! I've had it up to here!" he held a hand up past his head for emphasis.

"I-I can use my maryoku-" Yuuri tried to insist- trying to tell the other man that he wasn't completely helpless on his own.

"You're missing the point- how am I suppose to trust you to be safe when the moment I take my eyes off you, you do this!?"

"D-don't yell at me! If we don't get those masks, you could die!" Yuuri shouted, his face flushing in anger and embarrassment.

"TOUGH," Conrad shouted back, "THEY'RE NOT WORTH YOUR LIFE!"

"I'm j-just trying t-to h-help...!" Yuuri felt so ashamed- he couldn't hold back his tears as they began to run down his cheeks. He wasn't sure if Conrad would even notice since it was raining so hard. But the man didn't reply to that, instead he spun Yuuri around and began leading him back the way he came. Panic rose in Yuuri's chest at the thought of never seeing the kid again- but he knew he couldn't persuade the other man to chase the child down.

They walked in silence for a while until Yuuri couldn't bear the man's quiet seething anymore.

"S-stop! Just stop!" he gasped, planting his feet and turning to face the man, shaking off his oppressive hold.

"I'm not stupid-! I-"

"I didn't say that you are stupid. I said you do stupid shit!" Conrad cut him down easily.

"Just listen to me!" The youth cried, grabbing onto Conrad's sleeve and staring up at him through the rain. "I just want you to be proud of me...!" Yuuri cried, wiping his eyes with trembling hands. "D-do you really believe I-I'm useless...? That I just c-cause trouble...? I-I'm so worried a-about you- b-because it's my fault th-the mask-"

The growl from deep within Conrad's chest made Yuuri flinch.

" **Yuuri.** I would love to participate in this wonderful little shit-show you're throwing in my face but I'm soaked through to my underwear and it's starting to chafe my thighs, Wolfram is off wandering the streets of this shit-hole country alone thanks to you, I can't walk without limping like an old man past his expiration date and your hair dye is washing out. So, if you can hold your emotion freak out in for a teensy-weensy while longer I'd greatly appreciate that."

It was too much to handle. The man's harsh words overloaded Yuuri who couldn't even begin to think of what to say. He'd never had to face such hateful words from the man before. Even when Conrad was 'working' for Dai Cimaron- pretending to betray him... he'd never been so _callous._

Yuuri couldn't form a reply so he nodded numbly, allowing Conrad to silently drag him by the hand down the narrow streets and walkways of Svelera.

He stayed quiet and kept his head down, but couldn't keep the tears from staining his cheeks.


	5. Chapter 5

_This chapter is mostly Conrad/Yuuri making things up to each other lol, the plot will be moving along in the next chapter!_

Thank you to, Tsubasakura 2, wordtypo and Darklife21 for the kind reviews on Chapter 4! :)

* * *

The storm Murata had summoned using the Mateki must have sensed Yuuri's bad mood because it took a fierce turn for the worst, forcing practically everyone to abandon the streets and seek shelter. The once brightly lit, colorful market places were now deserted as vendors worked quickly to clear all of their goods into dry storage.

Conrad and Yuuri were seemingly the only ones still traversing the town- they had been for the better part of an hour.

" _WOLFRAM!_ " Conrad's voice called out through the empty streets only to be smothered immediately by the sound of the rain. "This is no use." he sighed, pulling Yuuri under an awning just so they could stop wiping rain from their eyes. "The storm is too strong, hopefully Wolfram will realize this and stop looking for you so he's not running around out here for hours."

Yuuri stayed quiet.

"Let's head inside." he said. "Yozak took the Northern side of town- once the storm picked up, he probably took care of our provisions and horses. We should get a room somewhere until this blows over."

Still, Yuuri said nothing the only indication he was still conscious was his occasional shivering. Conrad rolled his eyes at Yuuri's down-trodden face. The boy had been acting like a teenage girl ever since he'd snapped at him.

He knew the youth would have to speak eventually.

Conrad cursed his 'past self' for not having the balls to sit down before all of this and talk to their king about safety in a way that would actually provoke a change in the young man. If anything, this mask-bullshit might help him finally knock some sense into Yuuri.

Well... maybe.

After only round 1 of **Conrad Safety 101** : Yuuri looked like a mix between a battered wife and a drowned, depressed rat.

 _'He'll get over it.'_ he thought to himself as he began moving again- walking slower this time as he searched for a suitable INN to hunker down. _'He's just never been told the honest truth. That should have been my job- what the hell was I even doing before all of this? Babysitting...? I coddled him far too much.'_

There were large blank spaces in his memory that Conrad could only guess were caused by the mask. Because of this, he was left to wonder just how delusional he'd been towards his king. Lost in his own thoughts, he barely noticed as Yuuri rested his forehead against Conrad's arm, trudging along as he gripped the man's sleeve like a life-line.

It was all a blur to Yuuri but perhaps that was because he couldn't see clearly through his tears. Conrad had mentioned something about getting a room and within moments they were out of the rain and in the warmth of an INN. The main floor had large, long tables and benches made of sturdy dark wood and a counter at the far end- hosting a bar. The bartender turned out to be the inn-keeper as well. After an exchange of money and words Yuuri found himself following his godfather upstairs before being deposited in a room.

 _'This is nicer than most of the INN's I've seen in Shin Ma...'_ Yuuri thought, sniffling pathetically while looking around the sparsely decorated, yet comfortable room.

It had sand-stone walls, one window and dark wood floors covered by an over-sized, colorful, braided rug. It hosted a small table accompanied by two chairs and a bed only big enough for one. But the thing that made Yuuri smile with relief was the well made sand-brick fireplace on one end of the room- made to keep the room warm on cold desert nights. Conrad had dropped him off in the room and disappeared, instructing him to lock the door and stay put. After suffering the embarrassment of disappointing Conrad by running off and being reckless Yuuri didn't even think of disobeying the man's stern instructions.

Instead he pulled a chair close to the fire place and began working on igniting it. Thankfully he'd been in this world long enough to know how to work a fireplace.

Within twenty minutes there was a decent blaze burning within the hearth. Yuuri sat in front of it in his soaked clothes, still shivering. He was 18 years old- he'd turned eighteen this year, yet whenever he was around Conrad he felt like such a child. He hated that feeling. He wanted to prove to the man he was capable and reliable and that he didn't have to be looked after constantly.

Yuuri hung his head.

 _'I guess I didn't really give Conrad a good reason to believe in me.'_ he thought, running a hand through his hair with a sigh.

Just then the door was unlocked by none other than Conrad carrying a small bag over one shoulder and two plates of food. "Strip." he ordered quietly, locking the door. "I bought food and some clothes. They're not travel clothes so we'll have to dry the ones we have and re-wear them."

Yuuri eyed the plates of food as Conrad set them down on the table. Standing on unsteady feet he began working on the straps to his riding cloak and tunic with numb fingers. The brunette didn't seem to pay him any attention as he removed his own drenched clothes, hanging them in front of the fire place. Yuuri couldn't help but blush as he removed everything except his underwear- copying Conrad by hanging his clothes before the flames. When he wasn't handed clothes immediately Yuuri looked around, spotting the bag Conrad had brought in with him sitting on the bed.

The man wasn't wearing anything except his sword and underwear, (which Yuuri noted with mild jealousy that they were reminiscent of boxer briefs and looked far more comfortable than his own ridiculous underwear) sitting at the table, eating with a half-lidded expression.

He felt painfully awkward as he undid the bag and inspected the clothing. There were two sets of single-stitch cloth tunics and pants both in the same shade of tan, that reminded Yuuri of inexpensive hospital scrubs as he slipped them on. Why Conrad chose not to wear the other set, Yuuri wasn't sure but he couldn't bring himself to care as he turned his attention to the food.

He assumed Conrad had picked both meals up from downstairs, since they were served on metal plates. His eyes brightened as he looked over their contents: meat, some sort of vegetable, bread and a savory-looking gravy on the side. There was a single glass bottle of liquid on the table that smelled suspiciously like alcohol. He liked the look of all of these things, (except the alcohol) and the aromas were making him feel better if only by a little bit.

Yuuri joined Conrad at the table, fighting to keep his awkwardness under control as he felt his knees and occasionally his thigh brush against the other man's

They ate in silence for a while before he stole a look at his godfather's face.

"Wha-" Yuuri's eyes widened as he caught sight of Conrad's naked chest up close for the first time that evening. "What happened to you!?" he asked breathlessly, looking over the man's bruised form. Conrad's scarred eyebrow quirked as he looked down at himself then back at Yuuri's shocked face.

"I punched Hube." he said simply, taking a bite of vegetables. "Then Yozak punched me."

"W-when? Why? What for-" Conrad shrugged, finally making eye contact with the youth.

"I don't like him." he said as if it was a simple fact.

"But... then... did Yozak cause all of those b-bruises...?"

"Yes."

Yuuri didn't know what else to say- he rarely ever saw Yozak and Conrad fight outside of play-fighting or training. "Does Yozak look worse?" he asked, wondering if Hube and Yozak were injured badly by his knight.

"Nope."

Huh... Yuuri scrubbed his eye with his fist. Now that they were indoors, his contact lenses were irritating him terribly. "I thought you forgave Hube..." Yuuri said mostly to himself as he thought the situation over.

"Nope."

"W-why not...? You do remember everything that happened right- h-how he almost died a-and..."

Conrad pushed his plate closer to his so he could push extra food onto Yuuri's plate.

"Yup. I remember."

"Conrad..."

" **Conrart.** " his godfather swiftly corrected him.

Yuuri still couldn't believe their roles had reversed when it came to name-corrections. The once playful banter he'd shared with Conrad- by asking the man to call him 'Yuuri' had been replaced by Conrad bitterly reminding him to call him Conrart.

" _Conra-r-t-_ will you tell me what you're thinking? Why haven't you forgiven him? After everything?"

Conrad leaned back, crossing his long legs and folding his arms as he inspected Yuuri- secretly relieved the boy was talking again and eating.

"Because my men are still dead." he said, taking a slow sip from the glass bottle. "My injuries still ache and Lord von Wincott is still a father without a daughter." Yuuri lowered his head, somewhat thankful that Conrad hadn't said Julia's name aloud when their legs were brushing and Conrad wasn't wearing any clothes.

"But he found the Mateki." Yuuri said firmly causing Conrad to give him a weird look.

"Oh, no one told me!" he said, slapping his knee. "I wish I'd of known- that changes everything."

"You're so sarcastic, you were never like this before..." Yuuri began to complain before trailing off, blushing in shame. _'before I made you wear that stupid mask.'_ Yuuri finished in his head, feeling guilty again.

"I was. I just didn't show it to you." he said honestly. "Which brings me to another point- apparently before all of this I never sat down and told you the _do's_ and _don'ts._ "

Ah... that was something Yuuri was slowly learning about _'Anti-Conrad'_ apparently he only (clearly) remembered the times he'd been true to himself. Anti-Conrad barely had any memories of the times he'd spent with Yuuri which... hurt.

It meant Conrad wasn't being his 'truest self' for most of the time they'd spent together. He'd been acting so to speak- allowing Yuuri to do things and act ways he didn't personally agree with. Another thing Yuuri was learning about Anti-Conrad was that for all the man's horrible-ness he was honest.

It was the one good(?) thing about the man: his painful honesty. He had nothing to hide and no shame. It was... (sort of) nice to know the man would speak exactly what was on his mind regardless of how anyone felt about it.

"Do's and don't's of what...?" Yuuri asked warily, as Conrad finished what was in the bottle.

"Of being my godson." he said simply. "You did a big _'don't'_ today- as I'm sure you're aware."

"Ughh, spare me." Yuuri groaned as he laid his head on the table. "I don't want to be lectured anymore. I get it, I ran off and you're mad. I won't do it again."

"I'm not mad." Conrad said easily, making Yuuri look up at the man, eyes hopeful that they were about to have the heart-to-heart conversation that Yuuri had been so desperately craving.

"I'm furious."

 _'Great.'_ Yuuri thought. _'That's **so** much better.'_

"I won't have to lecture you if you're dead." Conrad said darkly. "You know what'll happen if you die?"

Yuuri just gave his godfather an irritated look as he finished his meal, rubbing his eyes again.

"I'll be really fucking pissed." he said before standing. "Everything I've done for the past twenty years would be for nothing- everything Julia did, wouldn't matter. In fact, I'd be so pissed I might lose my mind and pair back up with my good old friend King Belar so he and I could go gallivanting off to destroy this world together." he snapped causing Yuuri to give him a very strange look.

"Belar? Really?" Yuuri said, wrinkling his nose at the practically naked man before him. "You've got to be joking... You're saying you won't s-save me...?"

"If I even _CAN_ save you! What, you think I'm a goddamn magician? If you run into trouble and I'm not there, are you going to call me on your cell phone? Summon me using a chalk circle?" he snapped. "I rely on you to protect yourself when I can't or do you really just want me to surgically attach myself to you so we can be together always?"

Yuuri flushed, embarrassed. He understood what Conrad was getting at- that he had to be more careful but he still felt like he had something to prove to the man.

"You once told me we'd meet me in a different place, if I died..."

"I meant that." Conrad said, "Is that what you want? For us to have to face potential death because of your recklessness? You'd rather I get killed before you realize how stupid your actions are?" A lump began to form in Yuuri's throat as he swallowed thickly. Conrad had told him to be careful countless times before it had never been in anger.

Yuuri had to admit, he wasn't taking it well.

He thought he could handle Conrad being mad at him- or lecturing him but he really couldn't. He craved the man's praise and approval more than he'd ever craved validation from anyone. Even above his own father, Yuuri wanted Conrad to be proud of him. Needed the man's loving, solid devotion and acceptance. "I-I don't know what to say..." he said weakly, wringing his hands in his lap. "You were always there for me before all of this and now it just feels like you're a-against me, _j-just like..._ "

"Do not finish that." Conrad spat, coming closer and kneeling before Yuuri's seated form so he could look up at the boy's face. "I am right fucking here, I've always been here- I have not faltered so don't try to tell I'm not doing my damn job."

" _That's the problem!_ " Yuuri shrieked, tears springing to his eyes as if on cue. "It feels like you're doing your job as captain of the guard b-but not your job of being my friend!"

"I wasn't aware my job was to be your friend." he said coldly and Yuuri couldn't help but sob all over again, rubbing his eyes red.

"It's n-not b-but I _thought...!_ "

Like a parent to their child, Conrad couldn't be Yuuri's friend and protector at the same time. He could be friend sometimes and protector other times but it was unrealistic and dangerous to be both at once. Sometimes the truth was he had a job to do, regardless of how Yuuri felt about it. Sometimes he couldn't spare the life of the assassin trying to slit the boy's throat even if Yuuri treated him like a monster afterwards. Conrad would rather have Yuuri alive and hating him, than dead and loving him.

 _'Apparently this isn't common knowledge.'_ Conrad thought as he grabbed Yuuri's wrists, pulling the boy's hands away from his wet face.

"Yuuri, allow me take your contacts out." he said firmly.

"I can take them out myself!"

 _'Alright, this clearly isn't working.'_ Conrad sighed as he stood, removing his sword belt from his hip. Undeterred by his lack of pants, he carefully took Yuuri's arms in his hands and pulled the boy to his feet. Yuuri was reluctant, fighting against being forced to stand until he was tugged into a tight embrace. The man's long, tan arms wrapped securely around him as Conrad began to talk to him in low tones, rocking back and forth on his feet.

The embrace made him all but stop crying as he angrily buried his face into his godfather's neck, allowing his arms to awkwardly wrap around the older man's back. "I'm not heartless." Conrad murmured, running his long fingers through Yuuri's hair. "You look at me like I'm killing puppies..."

"I-I know you're not heartless, b-but you're just b-being so mean...!" Yuuri cried fighting the urge to pinch the man.

"I told you that you'd end up hating me." his godfather said and Yuuri did actually pinch him then, making the man hiss as he batted Yuuri's hand away.

"I don't hate you."

"Not yet."

"Conrad-"

" **Conrart**."

"CONRAD." Yuuri groaned. "I don't hate you I j-just... I never knew you could be so c-cold..."

"Excuse me?" he said, pulling Yuuri away so he could look at the boy's face. "I have been plenty cold in the past, you must have selective memory."

"How so?" Yuuri asked, his face heating up as he realized just how close they both were. The man's mouth was only an inch from Yuuri's forehead as he spoke.

"When I told you I'd watch Hube die if I had to. When I told you that you were no longer my master in Dai Cimaron. The time I told you I'd kill anyone who-"

"Okay, okay... you were just really sweet and nice in between those times so I guess it made them seem less severe..." Yuuri murmured as Conrad placed his hands on Yuuri's cheeks.

"Now," the man said moving his fingers to Yuuri's eyes. "Please allow me to remove your contacts."

Yuuri huffed but gave in as Conrad carefully prodded at his eyes, removing the lenses as efficiently as possible. Once they were out he heaved a huge sigh of relief as his protector stepped back, placing the lenses in a small container from Yuuri's coat pocket.

"All I want you to say is: _'Conrart, best godfather in the whole world, I promise I won't do anything reckless or stupid when you're not there to protect me.'_ and I mean it. If you continue to disappoint me I may have to leave and find a master who will respect me."

"Don't say that." Yuuri grumbled. "You promised you'd stay."

"I'm a man of conditions. I'll stay if you obey what little I ask of you."

"I won't die." the boy said, but all the heat had left his voice. Yuuri watched as Conrad prodded at the fire, the light making his tan skin glow in a way that was hypnotizing. "A-and I do respect you..."

 _'You're in love with my brother!'_ Wolfram's words from earlier suddenly popped into Yuuri's mind as he blushed fiercely, unable to take his eyes away from his godfather's tan, scarred, back- watching with fascination as the man's muscles tensed and relaxed, leaving him slightly out of breath.

"C-Conra-r-t...?" Yuuri asked as the man stood and looked over his shoulder at him.

"What."

"Why aren't you wearing any clothes..?" he had to ask, eyes darting briefly to the bag on the bed. Conrad's smile was just the same as it had been back in the carriage- lecherous and mean.

No... not mean- Yuuri was coming to understand that smile.

It was _seductive._

"Are you complaining?" he asked and Yuuri blanched, looking around the room: table, bed, floor, chairs- anything but at the other man. "Err... y-yes? No? I don't know- it's just kind of weird..."

"You've never shared a bed with me before, have you?" he asked.

"Uhm... well, sometimes you join me and Greta when we take naps- do you remember that?"

"Yes, but let me rephrase that: have we ever had sex?"

"EEEEHHHHH!?" Yuuri squealed, taking a step back. "N-no! We haven't! What do you mean!?"

"It was just a question." Conrad said, still sporting the same weird smile accompanied by a chuckle.

"Are you drunk?" Yuuri asked suspiciously, unable to control the embarrassed flush that had taken over his face.

"I wish a single bottle could make me drunk." the man said wistfully as he opened the bag on the bed and took the pair of clothes out, slowly putting them on. Yuuri couldn't tear his eyes away as the man's naked form gradually faded from view. He was in awe that Conrad could make such simple clothes look so good. "I'm not drunk. You're just too easy to tease."

"D-don't tease me!" Yuuri huffed, wavering a bit on his feet as he calmed down from a potential heart attack. However, he didn't get to fully recover before Conrad came close once more, bending down so he was at eye level with the teenager.

He was so close now that the tips of his fringe were gently touching Yuuri's face.

"I wouldn't tease you if you didn't seem to enjoy it so much."

"I-it's not that..." Yuuri said, unable to escape their closeness, the table's edge pressing against back of his thighs.

"Oh?" Conrad questioned softly, eyes dropping to look down at Yuuri's hips where it was evident that the teenager was half-hard beneath the thin fabric of his pants.

 _'I'm going to pass out.'_ Yuuri thought as he stared at the floor, mortified yet aroused all at once. Just then a strike of lightening and the sound of thunder drew both men's attentions to the window as Conrad shrugged, moving away once more.

 _'This is wrong.'_ Yuuri thought once he could breathe again. This wasn't Conrad- not the Conrad he knew... wasn't it wrong to do... this? Whatever _'this'_ even was, when Conrad wasn't himself? Or was this really Conrad's truest self-? What was he thinking, behind all that flirty weirdness? Was he actually hitting on Yuuri or did Anti-Conrad just enjoy teasing him like a kid.

A cat playing with a mouse.

 _'A lion playing with a lamb.'_ Yuuri thought with a grimace as he looked across the room at Conrad's peaceful face. He was leaning against the window, his eyes closed as he rested, listening to the storm. Yuuri couldn't help but feel guilty as he eyed the other man longingly. Even if Conrad wasn't himself... Yuuri felt utterly, hopelessly attracted to him.

It was as if the man's daring flirtations these past few days had opened up the flood gates of Yuuri's mind and heart, releasing all the pent up emotions he held for the man.

 _Damnit._

Wolfram had been right.

* * *

 _Fear not, Conrad's not done being an asshole. : ) lmao_


	6. Chapter 6

_This chapter is mostly for comedy and moving the plot along, no ConYuu in this one, sorry! Thank you for the kind reviews, Paixloup, issm, wordtypo & *Guest! I always enjoy reading them, they brighten up my day! :) I added a few characters- I can't really remember if Svelera had a king or what their alliance with Shinma was, so I just rolled with it haha. Hope Mi'kai is enjoyable! _

* * *

Yozak quietly made his way through the downpour, weaving in and out of alleyways and across the deserted town square.

The captain and the kid were safe, he knew this because he'd spotted them from a distance roughly an hour ago. However, after witnessing Yuuri's tearful exclamation and hearing the man's brutal words, the spy decided to leave them be. The captain had some making-up to do and Yozak knew he would only get in the way.

Besides, there was no safer place for Yuuri than with Conrad.

So, he went off in search of the blonde haired brat-prince. He thought it'd be easy, (since Wolfram never seemed to stay quiet for long) but the boy was nowhere to be found. Hoping Wolfram had enough good sense to stay out of danger, he circled back around and decided his best course of action was to meet up with Hube at the theater and see what the man had uncovered about the poster they'd seen there.

Making his way to the front of the theater, he was mildly surprised to see it was busy despite the rain. So busy in fact, that he couldn't even push his way to the entrance. This forced him to creep around the back into the ally behind the theater, scale a wall and sneak in through a window just to get inside.

Once he was in, he was pleasantly surprised when he found himself in a dressing room. Everything Yozak needed to make a disguise was laid out before him as he looked about in interest, picking through the various brightly colored outfits hanging on racks. _'This is a bit too easy.'_ he thought with a chuckle as he gleefully sat down in front of the vanity mirror.

"Ehhh?! Well, look-ey here!" Yozak laughed in shock as he came face-to-face with THE mask perched on a false wooden head sitting right-smack-dab in the middle of the vanity's polished surface. He picked it up swiftly before his smile fell into a confused frown. The mask in his hand was carved from heavy, yet cheap wood and painted to look like clay.

"It's fake...?" he murmured in fascination, "They have a replica of the mask of Drei? Well... that is _interesting._ "

The original 'birthday' mask was sitting in a box back at the castle in a multitude of shattered pieces so it made sense, he just hadn't expected to find such an exact replica here of all places. Just then, he heard footsteps approaching the dressing room door. Using his reflexes he stood up and threw on the nearest cloak and the mask just before the door swung open.

"There you are!" a stout lady said with an impatient roll of her dark eyes, "Get down to the stage, they're about to start!"

Yozak's smile grew behind the mask as he nodded and swiftly ducked past her into the hall.

"The stage is **THAT** way, you're not getting out of this so easily, it's your show tonight!"

"Ah, right!" he replied, as she grabbed his arm and began to drag him down the hall. "Comon, now... my goodness your arm muscles are becoming so toned!" she gasped, "Who are you working out for? The new girl?"

"Maybe." Yozak said, his voice muffled by the mask.

"Don't bother, she's a complete fool." the woman said with a dismissive wave. "A man like you would only find trouble with a dame like her."

 _'Ouch, harsh!'_ Yozak thought to himself as he was dragged into the back-stage area. Large curtains separated several sections of the stage as actors and stage hands bustled about. The woman deposited him there, wishing him good luck before vanishing once again. Yozak began scanning his surroundings for an exit when he noticed a figure approaching in his peripherals.

"Excuse me, I need that." a rough voice appeared over Yozak's shoulder as a large calloused hand grabbed the mask from his face, tearing it off in a single stroke.

"Y-Yozak!" Hube gasped.

"Hube!" Yozak cried.

There was a moment of silence as Yozak's eyes trailed down, looking Hube over.

 _"PPPFFFFTTT-!"_

"Shhh!" Hube hissed, shoving the mask back onto Yozak's face. "It was the only disguise I could find!"

The man was wearing what Yozak could only describe as a 'skimpy sheep' costume, complete with puffy white shorts and a white halter-top. He had large ram horns on his head and a choker around his neck that held a tiny bell. The sight made Yozak unable to control himself as he began to laugh before Hube shoved him backwards into a supply closet, closing the door.

"Quiet, I almost got discovered and thrown out of here once." Hube said and Yozak busted out laughing once more.

"M-Maybe i-it's because you stick out l-like a sore sheep! AAHAHAHA!" he roared and Hube rolled his lone eye. The spy's jokes were almost as awful as Lord Weller's.

"Where'd you find the mask?" he asked, removing the mask from the man's face once more and turning it over in his hands.

"It's fake." Yozak said, "It's not the real mask of Drei. This one seems to be a replica of the one back at the castle. We're looking for the other two masks: the masks of _Eins_ and _Zwei._ "

"Did you find his majesty?" Hube asked and Yozak smiled. "Yep! He's safe with the captain- now we're just missing Lord von Bielefeld."

Hube nodded as the crowd began to cheer outside their closet door, making him shudder. He hated large crowds.

"This mask... It's the main character." Hube said softly.

"Main character-?"

"The protagonist of a play. From what I gathered this mask is a symbol from a popular play in Svelera where the main lead wears a mask and cape and fights for justice. I was looking for the lead actor so I could steal the mask when I stumbled across you wearing it instead."

Yozak looked down at the cloak he was wearing, then at the mask.

 _'It's your show tonight!'_ the woman's words came back to him then as Yozak chuckled nervously. "We should get out of here pretty soon then, because I think I'm dressed as the star of tonight's show."

"You-"

Just then the closet opened and Hube shoved the mask back on Yozak's face. "It's starting!" the stout lady from before shouted "What are you doing hiding in a closet? Don't tell me you have stage fright!"

Yozak shook his head _'no'_ as he was dragged out of the safety of the closet by unnaturally strong woman. She was about to turn and leave with Yozak in tow, when her eyes glanced over Hube's form and narrowed in confusion.

"And who are you?"

The bell around Hube's neck jingled softly as he stood.

"I am... _Black Sheep_." he said with as serious of a face he could muster. Yozak held his breath, trying the hardest he'd ever tried in his life not to laugh.

"Isn't that... the sheep costume from family night last week?"

"No. It is Black Sheep."

"They reuse those costumed to death." she muttered. "I could have sworn that costume was _'Baa-Baa Honey Buns'!_ "

Yozak began to cough violently as his knees became weak _'Baa-baa honey buns! Baa-baa-ah I-I can't breathe!'_ Yozak thought, as he was dragged away, unable to put up a fight in his current condition.

Hube watched them go with a heavy sigh before making his way through the confines of the theater once more.

* * *

Wolfram was drenched. He couldn't remember a time he'd been this wet in his whole life without being completely submerged in a pool or bath.

With every step water poured out of his too-full boots as he waddled through the streets, pushing his blonde locks out of his face for the umpteenth time.

"YUURI! Conrad!" he cried, "Yozak! Gunter! Anyone...!?"

Yet, he found no trace of his group.

"We really need a safe-spot." he grit out, "To meet up at if we get separated, this is ridiculous! Is this how every mission Lord Weller and Gurrier go on turns out? How disorganized!"

"Hey boy, if you'd like you can come inside and stay with me~" a burly man outside the front of a seedy looking INN waved at him through the rain. There was no one else on the street so Wolfram assumed the brute was talking to him as he shot the man a glare.

"Get lost!" he barked, stomping through the mud once more.

"Suite yourself, stupid cur!" the man called, making Wolfram spin on his heel.

"What'd you call me!? I'll roast you!" He shouted. "Come here and say that to my face!" however, before the churlish man could approach him a hand landed on Wolfram's shoulder, making the boy nearly leap out of his skin as he whirled around to face his assaulter.

" _Such fury! Such passion!_ " there was a man before him that seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He was wearing a very fancy suit holding a large stylish umbrella. his blonde hair was slicked back and his smile was almost impossibly big.

"Don't touch me!"

 _"Such beauty!"_

"Shut up!"

 _"Such a fiery temper, my boy you are destined for the theater!"_

"Get out of my way!" he was surrounded! First that seedy jerk, now this wacko. Wolfram roughly pushed past the flowery-looking man who grabbed his arm once more. Drawing his sword, Wolfram shoved the man away and pointed the blade at his neck. Slowly, he ran his hand through his hair, pulling the golden, wet locks back as he looked down his nose at the man.

The brute at the INN watched in amusement but decided not to intervene.

Wolfram was about to make the man before him piss his pants with fear when his eyes landed on the man's chest.

"W-wait..." Wolfram said slowly, eyeing him in detail. "Where'd you get that?"

"My umbrella?"

"No! That pin." Wolfram said, coming closer, his finger's reaching out to touch the pin on the man's lapel.

"Oh, you like it? I do too- it's charming isn't it? It's to promote our newest hit, our most popular play yet!"

"A play?"

"You must be a foreigner to not have heard of it!" he said, unfastening the pin and handing it to Wolfram. "It's called " _The Midnight Man's Solstice!_ " he said, stars dancing in his eyes. "A dashing hero with a dark past fights for the good of the people against corruption from deep within-"

"I don't care about all that! This mask-" Wolfram said, staring at the small mask-shaped pin in his hand that looked like a miniature replica of the mask they'd all been searching for. "Where's this mask?"

"You don't want the pin?" he asked and Wolfram gave him a look.

"I want the mask- the _real_ mask."

The man looked to be thinking deeply for a moment before snapping his fingers.

"My boy, if you decide to join my theater I will give you that mask and you'll be paid handsomely to work for me."

Wolfram smiled ruefully. This man was an idiot! If he truly had a mask, Wolfram was going to take it and leave. There was no way he was going to become an actor or join some seedy theater in Svelera.

"Alright," he said, sheathing his sword. "Show me the mask and I'll consider joining your theater."

"Right this way, you won't regret it! My theater is the most beautiful in all the world!" the man offered his arm to Wolfram who refused to take it, instead he let the man lead the way while following a few steps behind. After all, he didn't need an umbrella at this point.

As he left he looked back over his shoulder at the crude man standing at the entrance of the INN.

"When you're on stage, stripping your clothes off, I'll make sure to throw you a coin!" the man shouted.

Wolfram made a derogatory hand gesture in turn.

When they'd finally made it to the theater, the man whisked Wolfram inside through a locked side door and took him to a changing room. The staff bustling about were nice enough to give him a set of dry clothes as they ran to-and-fro in dizzying patterns throughout the building.

The clothes looked like some sort of prince outfit but made of cheap fabrics, it wasn't something Wolfram would be caught dead wearing. He'd declined wearing it at first, but in the end he decided it would probably be for the best- since he was so hopelessly water logged.

Once he'd changed he was brought before the man once more who looked the same and insisted on carrying his umbrella even indoors.

"Oh, those fit you nicely!" the man said and Wolfram huffed in irritation.

"Where's the mask."

"So direct! I love it! Come, come!" he said, waving wolfram forward as they made their way up a set of narrow, dark steps. "Up here is the booth we reserve for the Emperor whenever they decide to come see our performances." he explained, leading Wolfram into an ordinate viewing balcony that sat high above the chandelier-lit stage.

"It's the best seat in the house." he said, leaning on the balcony's railing as he gestured to the play below.

Wolfram peered over the side of the railing and gasped when he saw a tall figure dancing about the stage with a sword in hand, play fighting. He was wearing a long flowing cloak and the very mask Wolfram had been searching for. The longer Wolfram looked the more awkward the actor looked, flopping about as if he had no idea where to go.

"There's your mask. If you really want it to badly. It's a small price to pay for such talent to join my theater."

"Who is that?" Wolfram asked, pointing at the man.

"Gustavo, our best actor." the man sighed, "Some say the reason he's such a great actor is because he's a different person every day."

Just then, the mask was clumsily knocked from the actor's face in a faulty blow- which looked like it was because Gustavo didn't know what the hell he was doing. As the mask hit the floor, it snapped in half, making Wolfram's eyes bulge out of his head.

The crowd roared, some in anger and some in awe as the owner of the theater gasped.

" _That's not Gustavo!_ " he shrieked, "Who is that man? I've never seen him in my life! Could it be, Gustavo has truly become a different person!?"

"Yozak!" Wolfram cried, pulling his sword out and waving it above his head to get the man's attention.

This did catch Yozak's eye as he looked up, shock and a cocktail of other emotions flitted across his face as he caught sight of the blonde. However he didn't have time to respond as an angry group of actors descended upon him, forcing him to flee the stage.

"Get the mask!" Wolfram shrieked, looking at the broken mask upon the stage. "Damnit!"

"He must be a thief! Ah, but you know him...?"

Wolfram gasped as his sword was suddenly knocked from his hand. In an instant he felt the cold tip of a blade touch the underside of his jaw. He turned his neck slowly to see that it was none other than the owner of the theater holding him at sword-point. The blade, Wolfram realized, had been concealed within the man's flashy umbrella the whole time.

"Not so fast- you seduced me!"

"I did no such thing!" Wolfram snapped, "Get out of my way!"

"Oh, the tragedy! It's marvelous~! Man falls for beautiful boy- boy betrays him and runs off with the thief but it is you who is the true thief, for you've stolen my heart!"

"GET YOUR CREEPY ASS AWAY FROM ME OR SO HELP ME," Wolfram snarled.

"You're all bark and no bite my beautiful cherub."

"You're about to get a lot more than just bit." Wolfram ground out as he stepped a half centimeter forward, allowing the blade to dig into his neck, almost breaking the skin with it's pressure.

The man's smiling face suddenly turned to confusion as he looked over Wolfram's shoulder.

" _Honey Buns...?_ " he muttered in shock before Wolfram felt the wind whip past him followed by a blur of white. He didn't have so much as a second to analyze what had happened before a man in a sheep outfit leapt out in front of him, wielding a sword so effortlessly that he cut the man's umbrella blade in two.

If the man's white short-shorts hadn't been so short and fluffy, or his halter-top so skimpy, Wolfram would have been in awe of how cool the man was- sheep outfit or not. However, all of this combined with the puffy white tail really did him in. Wolfram couldn't respect a man with such attire, even if he was a great swordsman.

"Lord von Bielefeld!"

Wolfram paled as he recognized the man's voice.

" ** _G-GEGENH-HUBER!?_** "

The flashy owner who'd once held him at sword point paled as he dropped what was left of his weapon, holding his hands up in defense. " _Baa-Baa, how could you!?_ " he cried.

Hube only grunted before he grabbed Wolfram by the arm, quickly dragging him down the back steps to the main floor. "What are you doing here!?" Wolfram asked, before suddenly remembering why he himself was there, causing him to dig his heels into the ground, nearly toppling the both of them.

 **"The mask!"** Hube and Wolfram said in unison.

"It's on the stage!" Wolfram cried, turning away.

"It's a fake!" Hube snapped, pulling Wolfram towards him once more.

"It's fake!? How do you know?"

As if the world decided to answer Wolfram's question for him- the audience from the theater began to filter out of the main hall and Wolfram's eyes widened with shock. Masks- _everywhere._ Practically every audience member was wearing a mask or had a mask pin on their lapel. Small children and elderly men alike.

"What is this!?" Wolfram gasped as Hube shuffled closer to the blonde.

He really hated crowds and all the jostling was causing the bell around his neck to jingle.

"They're all fakes. The mask is a symbol for a play." he explained. "Let us meet up with Yozak, highness."

Wolfram growled in frustration as he allowed Hube to lead him out of the theater- thankfully once they made it into the street it was barely drizzling, causing both men to sigh in relief.

Yozak only had to follow the sound of a jingling bell to locate Hube and Wolfram as he intercepted them in an alleyway not far off.

"There you are!" Yozak said, pushing his long cape over one shoulder. "We were looking everywhere for you!"

"Have you seen Yuuri?" Wolfram asked breathlessly. "I lost him, please tell me you've seen him." Yozak's eyes glittered with a strange unreadable emotion before he smiled, patting Wolfram's shoulder with a large hand.

"His majesty is safe, he's with the Captain. How'd you lose him?"

"He ran off!" Wolfram snapped, pushing Yozak's hand off his shoulder. "He's with the Captain!? Did you really leave Yuuri with Conrart?"

"Errr... yes? You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It is! You know how Conrart is right now!" Wolfram snapped. "He could hurt Yuuri!"

"Uh, I think he's a lot safer with the Captain compared to running around the city alone because you lost track of him. Also, you know your brother- he wouldn't hurt his majesty."

"Not _physically!_ " Wolfram growled.

Both men were interrupted by the snap of an elastic waist band hitting flesh as they glanced at Hube- who was adjusting his shorts, trying to pull them down to a more modest length.

"Yeesh... we all look kind of..." Yozak trailed off, inspecting their new clothes, he was an unmasked hero, Hube was a sheep and Wolfram looked like some sort of gaudy yet stylish peasant boy. "Lets go back to our horses, get changed and regroup." he said, "Then we can work on meeting up with his majesty- perhaps we can shed some light on this whole theater-mask fiasco."

Hube didn't need to be convinced, he was sold at 'get changed.'

Wolfram sighed, following the two older men as they made their way back to the entrance of the city. He felt relieved Yuuri was okay, but a knot was building in his chest at the thought of Conrart and Yuuri alone.

He just hoped it wasn't as bad as he thought.

* * *

Ken and Gunter sat upon plush cushions in an ordinate drawing room within the palace as they waited to have an audience with the Emperor of Svelera. The rain continued to roar against the palace windows, but both occupants were warm and dry as they drank tea, ate snacks and lounged about.

 _"Ooohhh~"_ Gunter bellowed, looking longingly out the window. "I do hope his majesty is alright... He would love these treats, they're just like the ones I make him..."

Ken had personally seen Yuuri play in rain or shine, hitting the ground and eating dirt on the baseball field many times, so he wasn't too concerned with how his high school friend was currently handling the weather.

"These are delicious." Ken said to himself, digging into the small cakes and sandwiches a servant had laid out for them.

"Rain causes his hair dye to run...!" Gunter wailed.

"I wonder what this jam filling is..."

"What if he catches a cold!?"

"I can't believe they packed so much flavor into such a small sandwich."

 _ **"He needs me...!"**_ Gunter cried, standing dramatically and flinging himself against the window pane, glancing out into the dark.

Gunter had been keeping his cool for days, being helpful and amazing and quiet, so long as he was close to his King. However, without fail, as soon as Ken removed the man from Yuuri's presence he slowly unraveled until he became _**this.**_

Thankfully he didn't have to remain alone with the distraught man long as the grand doors to the room were opened by guards and a flurry of colors burst through the entryway.

"Your highness, please wait!" a guard called, trying to stop the figure before they threw themselves on top of Ken.

 _"King Yuuuurrri~!"_ a voice far too feminine said as a solid body collided with Ken's forcing him deep into the cushions as guards approached them, pulling the figure off of him.

"Your highness, this is not King Yuuri!"

"It's not...?" once Ken found his glasses (they had been knocked from his face by the impact) and put them back on, he gasped when he saw the person before them was a girl who didn't look a day older than himself.

"We've told you, highness... this is The Great Sage, Ken Muarata and Lord Gunter von Kleist from Shin Makoku."

"Mou~ I heard Yuuri's name and just assumed..." she shook her head and her long silver hair flowed about her like clouds on air. She quickly sat down next to (practically on top of) Ken, despite the disapproving looks of her subordinates.

"Please, allow us to introduce her majesty the Emperor of Svelera-"

"My name is Mi'kai!" she said, cutting the man off who was trying to introduce her, grabbing one of Ken's hands in her own."You came from Shin Makoku?"

"Emperor... Mi'kai." Ken blinked slowly, eyeing her hand in his. "I'm Ken Murata and this is Lord von Kleist. We're-"

"Where's Yuuri?" She asked excitedly, cutting him off completely. Gunter made his way closer, inspecting the girl who sounded so enamored with his king.

"Ahh well, he wasn't able to come with us because something urgent came up. However, we have something to ask of you-"

"Did he like his birthday present?" she gasped, stars danced in her amber eyes as she pressed Ken's hand to her chest, making the old-soul'd sage blush furiously as his palm was pressed between her...

He gasped as his mind registered what she'd said.

"Birthday present?" Ken asked as Gunter sat down next to him. The 'Emperor's' subordinates all hovered around her nervously as they glared daggers at the foreign visitors.

"Yes! I haven't heard back from him at all, so I feared he might not have liked it..." she trailed off, looking upset as she let go of Ken's hand and started twirling and fussing with a strand of her hair.

"If I may ask, what exactly did you send to him, highness?" Gunter asked.

"Mou... I hope he doesn't hate it..." she murmured, her eyes becoming more and more troubled.

"A-ahem," the guard from before stepped forward. He wore a red and gold uniform and the longer Ken looked at him the more he assumed he was of a higher rank than he'd originally thought. "I am the captain of the guard, my name is Lord Sal'vak." he bowed. "Her lady sent King Yuuri a mask from a popular play in Svelera called _'The Midnight Man's Solstice'_ "

"YOU WERE THE ONE WHO SENT HIS MAJESTY THAT DREADFUL MASK!?" Gunter shrieked, making almost everyone in the room jump from fright, even Lord Sal'vak flinched, reaching for his sword.

"C-calm down Lord von Kleist!" Ken chided, hushing the older man.

"D-dreadful!?" Mi'kai stuttered, tears coming to her eyes, "He hates it, doesn't he? _Ohhh!_ " she whined, throwing her face into her hands. "I knew I should have sent him something else! It's my favorite play, but that doesn't mean it's his...!"

"N-now everyone calm down," Ken said, daring to reach out and hold Mi'kai's hand once more, even though he could tell it stressed Lord Sal'vak out. "I-It's not that he didn't like it," Ken reassured, "He thought it was very interesting. You said it was from a play?"

" _The Midnight Man's Solstice._ " she sniffled, squeezing his hand. "You would look much better with black hair, mister Sage."

Ken chuckled as he shook his head at her random mood swings.

"Where'd you get the mask you sent him? Did you find it?"

"We purchased it," Lord Sal'vak chimed in, knowing his charge wasn't going to answer adequately enough. "From Small Cimaron."

"They said it was the original mask that the _The Midnight Man_ 's mask was based on." she said sadly. "I thought it would be the perfect gift for Yuuri, to thank him for everything he's done for Svelera but..."

"Have you ever met King Yuuri?" Ken asked, he didn't think she had... but Ken hadn't been with Yuuri when he used the Mateki and brought rain to Svelera. He was still just Yuuri's high school friend at that time and hadn't even stepped foot in Shin Makoku.

"N-no, if I had met him I probably would have picked a more fitting gift... I just really love that play, so I thought..." she sighed sadly, "After he used the Demon Flute my advisers said King Yuuri immediately left Svelera. I never got to even see him. They say he's beautiful..." this made Gunter stiffen.

Ken nodded, "You said you sent the mask to King Yuuri for his birthday but when Yuuri received it, it had no name as to who sent it."

"Really?" she asked, furrowing her brow. "But I sent it with a letter...!"

Ken shared a look with Gunter. Perhaps the letter was lost? It had been a few months since Yuuri's birthday. Yuuri hadn't decided to open the presents until recently, so it was possible that in between that time the letter could have been misplaced.

"Well, I regret to inform you, since you seem to be such a fan of his majesty," Ken said slowly, "but that mask you sent him was an extremely dangerous magical item. We're here because it's caused harm..."

Mi'kai's face didn't change but there were small gasps heard throughout the room.

"Dangerous?" she echoed.

"H-how so, may I ask?" Lord Sal'vak cut in, sweat building on his brow. Had their innocent Empress sent another country a dangerous item by mistake? Svelera was just barely recovering after the drought, they didn't need a war!

"That mask is the Mask of Drei." Gunter said, his tone serious. "Do any of you know of it?"

There was only silence as Mi'kai scanned the faces of her advisers.

"No, I'm afraid we do not." Lord Sal'vak said quietly.

"It's one of three similar masks," Ken said, "When someone wears it, their soul is split into three parts..."

"Is his majesty King Yuuri alright?" Lord Sal'vak cut in, looking slightly panicked.

"Y-you mean that mask hurt Yuuri!?" Mi'kai shrieked in horror as he reeled back in shock.

"Thankfully, King Yuuri is safe," Ken reassured the group who all sagged with relief. "However, Yuuri's captain of the guard, Lord Conrart Weller was affected by the mask and is now stuck in a peculiar state because of it."

"Peculiar state?" Lord Sal'vak asked.

"The mask split his soul into three separate pieces and sealed those pieces away within the other masks. If we don't collect them all, he will eventually die from the affects."

Lord Sal'vak and Mi'kai shared a worried look. Mi'kai had never worn the mask- none of them had. By the time it arrived from Small Cimaron they had to quickly send it to Shin Makoku to make sure it arrived before Yuuri's birthday. If they'd worn it... they could have easily been the ones suffering instead.

" _I... I'm so sorry!_ " Mi'kai cried, suddenly bursting into tears, "I had no idea the mask was dangerous!"

"It's not your fault, highness." Lord Sal'vak comforted her, placing a large hand on her thin shoulder. "None of us knew the mask could be dangerous- we simply thought it was a novelty... Sage, please tell us this won't result in a w-war, should..."

"Heavens no!" Gunter nearly shouted. "His majesty is strictly against war. He would never think to form an army for such reasons."

Lord Sal'vak collapsed, sitting in a chair as he held his head in his hands. "I apologize," he said shaking his head. "I was deathly afraid, for a moment..."

 _'With good reason.'_ Ken thought to himself, _'Shinma is four times the size of Svelera. Not to mention Svelera is in no position to fight. They have hardly any supplies or allies.'_

It took several minutes for Mi'kai to calm down, her tears almost unstoppable. To give her privacy all of her advisers except Lord Sal'vak and two guards stayed. Lord Sal'vak sat close to her side as he comforted her.

Ken could tell the man cared deeply for her.

"M-my father..." she stuttered, wiping her eyes once more. "B-before I became Empress, my father ruled Svelera. He was a good man but he hated the Demon Tribe." she said sadly. "I didn't know he had those awful mining camps and what they were doing to those women and children." she shuddered. "When he passed away about a year ago, shortly after King Yuuri visited, I came to power and learned all about his policies. I abolished all the camps shortly thereafter." she sat up a bit straighter, a small smile on her pained face.

"It's a terrible thing, after the loss of a loved one; to learn they're not who you thought they were."

"His majesty loved you deeply," Lord Sal'vak reminded her quietly.

"I did not say that he didn't." she snapped, but all the heat left her voice almost immediately as she met her subject's eyes. "People can still love and be monsters..."

"I'm sorry," Ken said, eyeing the sandwiches but deciding against eating when the Empress was so clearly distressed. "I'm sure it was hard..."

"When I heard of how King Yuuri came and helped Svelera- how he called the rain and saved those women in that camp... He didn't have to do any of that for a nation that hated Demons." she locked eyes with Ken.

"I don't care how criticized I am as a leader, I am going to make peace with Shin Makoku. I want to be allies... Which is why this mask distresses me so...!" she cried again and Lord Sal'vak was left to comfort her all over again.

"Do you have any idea where the other masks are... or who exactly you purchased it from in Small Cimaron?"

"We purchased it from a market that is directly connected to the _Golden Goose_." Lord Sal'vak said, wrapping his arm around Mi'kai's shoulder as she cried into his chest.

"The _Golden Goose_?" Ken asked, sharing a confused look with Gunter.

"It's a chain of vendors in Small Cimaron that form a very rich market place for only those of high social status or great wealth." he explained. "They won't sell to anyone who doesn't have an established place in the world."

"I see." Ken nodded.

"As for the other masks, I'm afraid we don't know. The mask we sent to King Yuuri was the only mask we bought or was advertised to us."

"Perhaps you should investigate that vendor." Ken said seriously, "Just in case they were planning on causing harm to Empress Mi'kai."

"We shall."

"Alright!" Ken clapped, causing Mi'kai to temporarily stop crying. "We're heading to Small Cimaron to investigate the _Golden Goose_."

"I'll have my men put together a report for you before you leave." Lord Sal'vak said, "It'll detail which vendor we purchased it from and where to locate them along with any other information we can gather. It's the least we can do for causing his majesty such grief."

"It's quite alright. I know King Yuuri well," Ken said cheerfully, "After all this is over he'd love to meet you to form an alliance. I'll be sure to tell him everything we've talked about."

"I'll write him another letter," Mi'kai sniffled. "If you'll be so kind to make sure it reaches him this time...?"

"I shall." the sage grinned, giving her his most charming smile. Yuuri was too lucky! He would have gladly worn the mask himself to have a chance with such a lovely girl as Mi'kai... Perhaps he would have a chance, later on... when his hair wasn't dyed and when Yuuri settled down.

"Oh, and Sage?" Mi'kai asked, standing once more to be at eye level with the boy who was exactly her height. "Thank you for everything, if I can be of any assistance to King Yuuri, please allow me to be. I feel simply awful for hurting Lord Weller like this."

"It's not a problem at all," Ken waved, but he couldn't think of what else to say as Mi'kai suddenly hugged him tightly, squeezing him with all her might.

Lord Sal'vak adverted his jealous gaze, as not to offend the boy.

"Sara-" she caught herself, "I'm sorry, King Saralegui in Small Cimaron is a friend of mine. We've recently gotten close these past few months since he and I share a lot in common. We're both young rulers who've lost our fathers." she explained. "If you should need my help in speaking to him..."

"Ah, actually Sara's also a friend of King Yuuri." Ken said as he reluctantly detangled himself from her warmth.

"H-he is...? You must be mistaken..." she said, furrowing her brow. "Sara told me he's never met Yuuri..."

Ken's eyes went a wide before narrowing suspiciously as he shared an understanding look with Gunter.

"I... see... well, thank you highness. Lord Sal'vak if you'll please gather that paperwork for us, we should get going."

The man nodded as Ken and Gunter bid the 'Emperor' of Svelera farewell and followed Lord Sal'vak into the hall.

 _'Sara...'_ Ken thought as he followed Gunter and the captain of the guard. _'It could be nothing...'_ he fingered the flute in his breast pocket thoughtfully.

 _'Or perhaps Sara's been planning something sinister lately... I guess we won't know until we confront him ourselves and scope out the Golden Goose... Even if Mi'kai wasn't planning anything sinister she could have been set up. Or perhaps I read her wrong... perhaps she is the one behind this and she's fooling me with those tears.'_

Ken glanced upwards, looking outside the tall slanted windows as the storm poured relentlessly on.

* * *

 _For those who want to know: Mi'kai is about 16 years old, she's human and has tan skin (like Greta) silver hair and yellow/amber eyes. Lord Sal'vak is human and also has tan skin but he has dark brown hair and green eyes he's probably about 27 (stop creepin' Lord Sal'vak...) _


	7. Chapter 7

It had been hours since he and Conrad had gotten a room at an INN to beat the rain.

"What's your favorite color?"

"Red."

"What!? No! Your favorite color is blue!"

"I didn't know there was a wrong answer..." Conrad replied.

Yuuri made a face as Conrad gave him a look.

"Alright, what's your most embarrassing memory?"

"Ugh." Conrad groaned, "Why in the world would I answer that?"

"Comon! I'll tell you mine: it was when I woke up in a woman's restroom drenched in toilet water after losing against a gang of bullies, wearing a g-string surrounded by a bunch of police officers and Murata."

Conrad quirked a brow, unable to recall this fact about Yuuri's life due to the large gaps in his memory.

"It wasn't my fault! It was actually YOUR fault, considering you're the reason I'm a king to begin with." Yuuri mused, a smile on his face.

"I fail to see my wrong doing."

"Well, I told you mine- now tell me yours!"

Conrad shrugged crossing his arms.

"I went on a camping trip with my father- they were common when I was a child. He was traveling with a group of men. We all fell asleep and I had a bad dream. I went to find my father and curled up next to him so I wouldn't feel so bad and went back to sleep. Turns out the man I curled up next to wasn't my father. I even kissed him goodnight."

"H-how old were you?"

"I don't know, roughly 12 in human years- old enough to feel mortified when I woke up and heard him whisper: _'it's alright, I don't mind if you call me daddy.'_ "

"Ehhhh? That's your most embarrassing memory? It seems tame compared to what this world has put me through!"

"I didn't know this was a competition."

"Right, right," Yuuri thumped his forehead with the palm of his hand. "Alright fine, moving on. What's your favorite food?"

"Chocolate."

"That's not a food."

"I can't seem to answer any of these correctly." Conrad quipped and Yuuri rolled his eyes.

"You really like chocolate?"

"Yes."

"I never see you eat it."

"Doesn't mean it's not my favorite."

"True..."

Things went on like this until the rain ceased against the window pane. Conrad glanced out the window as Yuuri made his way to the fireplace to check on their clothes.

"My turn." Conrad said quietly, his chin resting in his palm as he watched the sky outside. "Why did you end your engagement to Wolfram?"

"Ehh?" Yuuri huffed, crossing his arms. "That's not fair- that's not a question I can ask you."

Conrad was quiet as he thought for a moment before that seductive grin slowly made its way onto his face.

"If you answer my question I'll answer, with honesty, one question of yours, on any topic." Yuuri's heart stilled as he quickly looked away from the older man. Their clothes were dry and the rain had all but stopped, so they would be able to head out soon...

That offer was so tempting.

Yuuri could ask Conrad _anything_ and the man would answer? Was he telling the truth?

Should Yuuri tell the truth?

"W-why do you want to know why I broke it off with Wolfram...?"

"If you accept my offer," Conrad said, "That could be your question. So what'll it be?"

Damnit, he was sneaky.

"Alright," Yuuri nodded, "But it's nothing scandalous: I broke our engagement because I wasn't in love with him... that's all. We never really got along, you know? We were always yelling at each other... Wolf's my best friend now. We get along a lot better now that we're not engaged."

Conrad nodded thoughtfully as silence fell between them.

"Alright." the man said simply. "I'll answer one question of any topic."

Yuuri's ears roared as all the questions he'd ever wanted to ask Conrad rushed into his mind, such as:

 _'Are you attracted to men or women?'_

 _'Were you in love with Julia?'_

 _'Do you protect me only because I inherited her soul?'_

 _'Have you ever had sex with Yozak?'_

 _'What do I mean to you?'_

and most of all...

 _'Are you in love with me?'_

But Yuuri wasn't sure if he had the nerve to ask that question. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know the answers to some of them, either.

"Er..." he cleared his throat, avoiding looking at his godfather. "W-well..."

Conrad's smile suddenly disappeared as he leaned forward, listening intently.

 _'Damnit.'_

"I'm boring." Yuuri said, before looking at Conrad with an apologetic smile. "Tell me why you wanted to know the reason behind the end of my engagement to Wolfram."

There was a moment of silence before Conrad huffed half a laugh and stood up from the bed, approaching Yuuri.

"Wow," he said, grabbing his dry clothes one by one. "You are boring."

"Conra-" Yuuri rolled his eyes. "Con **ra-r-t.** "

"Because I wanted to know whether you were ever in love with him or not." he answered honestly. "Guess that's it- you weren't."

"Obviously." Yuuri grumbled, hardly giving Conrad's answer a second thought. "I didn't mean to propose to him in the first place. I thought you of all people would know that..."

"I suppose." the man replied while getting dressed. "Put your clothes on. It's about time we head out and find the others." he ordered quietly.

Yuuri groaned, remembering their current situation- their entire entourage was scattered all across Svelera without a way of communicating or finding one another. "What's our plan?" he asked, eyeing Conrad's fully dressed form. "How're we going to find everyone?"

"Well," Conrad chuckled, leading Yuuri to the window and pointing off into the distance over the skyline. "What do you see?"

Yuuri's eyes drifted across the mud brick city but nothing in particular stood out to him- no billows of smoke or giant magic circles... Wait a second.

"Is that...?" Yuuri asked, squinting at the splash of color against the (now) crystal clear sky. "Shinma's flag?"

"Yes, it looks like _someone_ must want us to visit palace." Conrad replied, eyeing the flag that was currently flying atop the tallest spire of Svelera's capitol building. "We'll start there. I'm sure the others will notice it, too."

As Conrad pulled away Yuuri couldn't explain the profound feeling of loss in his chest- the emptiness that followed all of his unanswered questions.

 _'Damnit, I should have asked him.'_ Yuuri thought, as he felt the moment slip through his fingers. _'I don't know when or if I'll ever have the nerve to ask again...'_

* * *

Kneeling in the brush outside the city gates, Hube patted the sand flat where he'd finished burying their theater costumes.

"Any departing words for _Baa-baa Honey Buns_?" Yozak joked, watching the man get to his feet.

"Good riddance."

"We should of had a fall-back plan." Wolfram spat, adjusting his travel cloak and kicking the dirt beneath his feet. "None of this should have happened, you and Weller of all people should have known better."

Yozak laughed, watching the blonde with amusement.

"I agree." Hube sighed wearily. "We need a better plan of action. We don't know where the Sage and Lord von Kleist are, and we've been separated from his Majesty..."

"It's not bad." Yozak soothed, "His majesty is safe with Conrart and the Sage is with Lord von Kleist. We also found out something interesting- that this town is obsessed with _The Midnight Man's Solstice_ and in turn, the mask of Drei. Let's go find Lord von Kleist then we can-"

"You can do whatever you want!" Wolfram growled, turning away from the two men. "I'm finding Yuuri."

"Don't be brash!" Yozak snapped, "Hey, I'm talking to you!"

"Shut up!" Wolfram seethed, turning on his heel. "You know how Weller is right now I can't believe you left Yuuri alone with him! It's getting dark and there's NO WAY in HELL I'm going to allow them to get a room tonight, _together_ without **me.** "

"Going off on your own isn't going to make regrouping any easier. In case you haven't noticed, highness, you're not his majesty's fiance anymore so if this is about-"

"Do not finish that sentence." Wolfram growled coldly. "This isn't because I'm his _ex-fiance_ you vile beast. It's because I care about him and don't want to see him hurt."

Yozak rolled his eyes, "So chivalrous of you." he drawled.

"Follow me or don't. I don't care."

Yozak and Hube shared a look and the latter heaved a heavy sigh.

"How do you expect to find them?" Yozak asked, following the blonde as he marched his way through the gates. "It's getting dark fast so maybe you should think of a plan before we all go running off into the night-" Caught up in his own rant, Yozak didn't realize Wolfram had stopped walking until he bumped right into him, causing the younger man to stagger a few steps.

"Watch it!" Yozak snapped. "Don't just stop mid-"

"Look!" Wolfram gasped, pointing into the sky. "Look at the castle!"

In the center of the city the palace's tallest spire was decorated with two flags: the royal flag of Svelera and directly below it, the royal flag of Shin Makoku.

"Wolfram."

"It's Lord von Bielefelt to you, Gurrier."

"Do you still want to find his majesty? Don't you think we should go to the palace- that flag must mean Geika made it inside. Bocchan and the Captain will no doubt see it. Hell, they might be there already."

Wolfram's shoulders deflated as he took a deep breath. _"He's such a jerk..."_

"The captain?"

"No." Wolfram grumbled. "Fine, the castle first. If he's not there- I'm going to find him with or without you."

"Deal." Yozak replied, waving over Hube. "We're going to the palace! Let's hope Geika found something good."

* * *

It wasn't long before the two groups emerged at the palace and were reunited once more. They were then brought within the palace walls to meet Mi'kai, Svelera's young empress.

" _King Yuuuri!_ " The girl cried while crushing Yuuri in a vice grip. " _Waaaaah!_ _I'm so sorry!_ "

"I-It's alright!" Yuuri gasped.

" _Heeiikkaaaa!_ " Gunter sobbed, wrapping his long arms around Yuuri like an octopus.

"Ahhh! W-Wolfram, h-help!" Yuuri gurgled, reaching out to the blonde.

"You deserve this, wimp!" Wolfram shouted. "I can't believe you ran away from me like that! I was worried sick!"

"T-this is Empress Mi'kai of Svelera, and Lord Sal'vak." Ken introduced the group. "I didn't expect you to actually meet them today but I ran into some trouble figuring out how to reunite everyone." the boy sage laughed.

"Our deepest apologies, King Yuuri." Lord Sal'vak bowed. "We were not aware the mask of Drei was a dangerous item and we deeply regret the position it has put you in."

Yuuri, having slipped free from his captors, gave the man a large smile.

"It's alright!" he beamed, "Mistakes happen, I understand. It's actually Conrad that was affected-"

"Yes, we heard." Lord Sal'vak said, raising his eyes to meet Conrad's intense gaze.

 **"Conrart."** the man snapped.

"Ah, y-yeah. Con **r** **a-r-t**." Yuuri corrected himself. "My wise-man Murata told us you have news on where we might locate the other masks?"

"The _Golden Goose_." Mi'kai sniffled, wiping her eyes.

"We've gathered all the necessary information and provisions for your party. Though we wish you would stay the night and allow us to treat you. It's the least we can do..." Lord Sal'vak said while comforting his queen.

"Ahhh, it's actually sort of a time-sensitive thing." Yuuri blushed. "But that's very kind of you-"

"N-no!" Mi'kai sobbed. "It's you, that's been so kind-!" she couldn't finish as she broke down into tears once more. "I'm so ashamed!" she cried. "I've caused you such grief and I-"

"Hey now, don't worry-" Ken chimed in, "Empress Mi'kai, didn't you say you wanted to form an alliance with Shinma?"

The empress nodded, daring to reach out and take Yuuri's hand, surprising the boy.

"King Yuuri, we the nation of Svelera wish to form an alliance with Shin Makoku. I understand if you're hesitant but know that we wish only to forge good relations and wish to help Humans and Demons live in peace. W-would y-you... a-ah- t-that is-!"

"Would you be so kind to accept our offer, your majesty?" Lord Sal'vak finished, looking deeply into Yuuri's eyes.

"O-of course! I'm not hesitant at all, that's great!" Yuuri laughed. "The last time we were here everything was a mess. You've really done a great job making Svelera into a better place to live."

"Oh not at all, your majesty- it was you with the demon flute who brought rain to-"

"I hate to interrupt this little get-together," Conrad grit out, snatching Yuuri's hand forcibly out of Mi'kai's. "but we have a schedule to keep."

Yuuri's blood ran cold as he stared in shock at his godfather. "A-ahaha please forgive him- it's the mask!" Yuuri stuttered, flushing from embarrassment. "He's really a sweet person, I promise!"

Conrad quirked a brow at that.

"O-of course- please, follow me." Lord Sal'vak bowed once more before taking the arm of his queen and leading the group deeper into the palace. Mi'kai looked like she wanted to protest but if she was the cause of this poor man's change in personality- the least she could do was try to be understanding.

The signing of the treaty and formation of the alliance was a brief affair. Due to the suddenness of it all, it lacked the usual royal flare, but neither ruler seemed to mind as they signed their names with confidence and smiles.

"Thank you, King Yuuri. Please don't hesitate to let us know if we can be of any help in your future. I hope that when we meet again it will be under brighter circumstances." Mi'kai said, smiling at the boy king.

"You bet!" Yuuri grinned.

Almost immediately after, they were lead to the stables.

 _"Shibuya."_ Ken whispered, leaning close to Yuuri's ear. " _Empress Mi'kai told me she knows Saralegui._ "

"Eh? Well... I suppose that makes sense. Mi'kai is a human queen and Sara is the king of Small Cimaron so-"

"No, she told me that Sara told her that he's never met you before."

"Seriously?" Yuuri scrunched up his nose. "Why in the world would he tell her that...?"

"I don't know, but I have a feeling we're going to find out. Once we leave this palace we'll be taking a boat into Small Cimaron waters."

"Do you think we'll find the other masks, Murata?" Yuuri asked suddenly, worry etched on his face.

"O-of course!" Ken smiled, trying to comfort his friend. "Lord Weller will be back to normal in no time."

Conrad must have heard this because he turned around just enough to shoot the wise-man an icy glare.

"At any rate, we learned a lot here. I believe Mi'kai may have been manipulated by someone within the _Golden Goose_ into sending you that mask. Someone who must have known that Mi'kai liked the _Midnight Man's Solstice_ enough to place the real mask in her possession. I think their end goal was to get you to wear it."

"I wish I had." Yuuri murmured. Conrad had been through enough already, it pained him to see the man suffer due to his own stupid mistake.

As they approached the stables Conrad slowed down until Yuuri and himself fell into stride with each other and gave Murata a look. Ken took this as a sign that the man wanted a moment alone with the other so he hurried ahead of them to assist in preparing the horses.

"Yuuri."

"Hey Conrad- ah- I really can't get it right, can I?" he laughed weakly, looking miserable. "I meant Con **ra-r-t**..."

Conrad leaned down until his mouth was practically pressed against Yuuri's ear as he grabbed the youth's arm to stop him in his tracks.

 _"Listen to me when I say this because I won't say it again,"_ Yuuri froze. He wanted to look at Conrad's face but the man was too close. " _I wanted to know if you were in love with Wolfram for a reason. Don't ignore me._ "

"What?" Yuuri gasped as Conrad let him go, stepping forward to take the reigns of his horse.

Wolfram witnessed this exchange from afar and gave Yuuri a sideways glance before mounting his horse. He then slowly maneuvered the steed in front of Yuuri and held out his hand.

"Comon' wimp." he said softly. "You owe me for running off."

Yuuri shook his head but a smile found its way onto his face as he took Wolfram's open palm.

"Next stop, Small Cimaron!"

* * *

 _Hey guys! This chapter was ROUGH for me to write- it didn't want to come together at all so I apologize if it was a little lack-luster! The next chapter should be smoother :) Thanks for reading!_


	8. Chapter 8

"Contacts again, huh?" Yuuri sighed as Gunter gently helped him put them in. "Yes, your majesty- this ship is a human vessel. We're headed into Small Cimaron territory but we'll be stopping in Caloria first so we must hide your identity."

"I know, I know, I just hate contacts. They make my eyes itch."

Yuuri and the group were currently aboard _'Sky Blue II'_ a passenger ship headed for Caloria. Ever since they had left Svelera nearly a day and a half ago, Anti-Conrad had been moody. He'd also been drinking heavily.

"I wonder how Lady Flynn is doing." Yuuri mused as he adjusted his sword belt.

Wolfram, who was curled over a bucket, rolled his eyes.

"Once we reach Caloria we'll ride into Small Cimaron." Yozak said.

Before Yuuri could reply, Ken burst into the suite. "Shibuya, they have a buffet! You have to see it- they have something that looks just like Tempura!"

"Ahh, I'm _starving~_ " Yuuri groaned, pushing Gunter aside as he stood up. "Gunter can I please go? Send someone with me- I don't care who, I just really want to eat something."

"Don't talk about food in front of me..." Wolfram groaned, "I'm going to hurl."

"Perhaps his majesty would like to rest while I, your loyal servant Gunter will hand select the finest items from the buffet and bring them back to you here, where it's safe?"

"Yeah, right! Remember the last time you said that? You didn't get me anything because according to you, _'none of it was good enough'_ for me to eat!" Yuuri grumbled.

"But it wasn't your highness!" Gunter cried, "I didn't want to hinder your growing form by feeding you less than honorable ingredients!"

"Gunter, if only you knew what I eat back in Japan- you'd understand that anything I eat here is good for me by comparison."

"Comon' Shibuya!" Murata laughed, pulling his friend out the door.

"Well, Lord von Kleist, perhaps you'd like to go through these reports with me that Lord Sal'vak graciously left us?" Yozak chuckled, leading the man to the table of documents. "I have to say it's a lot to take in and I'm not as well read as you are. Not to mention Conrart's useless right now so you're the only one I can turn to."

The man in question lazily looked up from the sofa he'd been lounging on.

"I'm resting."

"You're drunk on wine and you're in the way." Yozak announced, making a 'shoo' motion with his hand. "Why don't you follow his majesty and make yourself useful."

"Why don't _you?_ " Conrad grumbled, rising to his feet. "I guess I really am just a baby sitter."

"Conrart!" Gunter snapped. "That's disrespectful! You should be ashamed of yourself- have you truly been drinking this whole time?"

"Oh be quiet." Conrad grunted, taking his sword and heading for the door. "It's the honest truth. Now if you'll excuse me..."

With that, he disappeared through the door, allowing it to slam shut behind him.

"Remember when he was like that all the time?" Yozak grinned, nudging the lavender haired man.

"Do not remind me... I had hoped I'd never see this side of him again."

Hube stayed silent.

* * *

"Woooaaahh!" Yuuri gasped, glancing down the seemingly endless buffet table. "This is incredible! They have so much seafood!"

"Shibuya look, there's the Tempura- it looks like Tempura, right?" Ken drooled, leaving Yuuri's side to get a closer look.

"Do they have alcohol?"

"Ack!" Yuuri squawked, looking up at Conrad who'd seemingly appeared out of thin air. "Don't do that, you scared me! Also is drinking right now really a good idea? Haven't you drank enough already?"

There was a moment of silence as Conrad stared at him before he leaned down so close to Yuuri's face that he thought he might actually kiss him. He smelled alcohol on the man's breath, causing memories of the previous day to flicker through Yuuri's mind.

"Here's the plan: I'm going to get properly wasted. In order to do that you need to stay out of trouble. I'm honestly not sure if that's possible for you so instead of asking you to avoid trouble I'm going to ask you to splash water on me if you're in trouble. It'll sober me up."

"Seriously Conrad? It's not even noon-"

"Con **RART.** " he corrected once more. "Remember what I said." Conrad murmured, roughly patting Yuuri's cheek his his hand. "Water."

Yuuri could only grumble as he watched the older man approach the beverage counter.

"Comon' Shibuya, don't mind him. Perhaps it's best Lord Weller gets drunk on this trip." Murata said, leading Yuuri away from the man.

"How so?" Yuuri asked warily as Murata handed him a plate.

"You haven't noticed? Everyone's on edge because of his behavior. Perhaps if he gets drunk he'll pass out and when he wakes up we'll be in Caloria. At any rate, there's not much that can happen to him in a place like this."

"But it's my fault he's like this- Shouldn't I try and do something..."

"Yes." Murata said seriously, piling his plate high with food. "You should ignore him."

Yuuri gave in and began filling his plate. He thought about making a plate for Conrad but decided against it- knowing that all Conrad wanted to do was drink like a fish. Once their plates were full, they made their way to a table.

"So, that Mi'kai girl." Murata said, stuffing his face. "She's a real looker, am I right?"

"Murata- you sound like an old man. Cut it out." Yuuri grumbled as he began to dig in.

"What, I'm just saying! I wouldn't mind a girl like her as my girlfriend."

"Her protector seems really into her, though."

"Yeah- speaking of protectors. Didn't you and Lord Weller get to spend some alone time together?"

Yuuri blushed at that, remembering his involuntary boner and his long conversation with the man.

"Y-yeah, what of it?"

"Well, I was just wondering if you were getting along with him. Is he a completely different person?"

Yuuri sighed as he looked back at his godfather who was slumped over the bar, signaling the bar tender for another glass.

"Something tells me he was always like this I just didn't know it." Yuuri murmured miserably. "I just wonder if we find the masks, will he go back to normal? Or will he stay the same?"

Murata shrugged.

As they ate, Yuuri's eyes drifted across the crowd of passengers. At first they didn't seem odd, but the longer Yuuri looked the more he realized there was something missing.

"Hey, Murata..." Yuuri murmured, tapping his friends shoe under the table. "Where are all the girls?"

"Huh?" Ken looked up then, scanning the crowd. To his surprise there wasn't a single woman big or small anywhere in sight. "There's just men." Yuuri said in bewilderment. "Is this like a gender-separated dining room or something?"

"Maybe it's like Caloria, where all the men were drafted- but instead this time the army needed women soldiers."

Yuuri quirked a brow at that. "Sometimes I wonder why I call you my wise-man. That's the dumbest thing you've said all day."

Things went on like this, the two double-blacks enjoying each other's conversation until Yuuri turned around once more to check on Conrad and noticed that the man had company. A tall blonde haired gentleman was seated next to Conrad at the bar and they appeared to be talking intimately in low tones.

The man then reached forward to touch Conrad's hand while giving him a smile.

Murata noticed the shocked, then sour look that came over Yuuri's tender features when Conrad smiled back.

"Comon' Murata," Yuuri said, pushing his chair back as he stood. "let's take a walk- I need some fresh air."

"Now you're the one who sounds like an old man." he smiled sympathetically, following Yuuri out of the dining room.

On deck, there was a strong breeze as sparkling waves crashed against the ship, spraying gentle sea-mist in Yuuri's face. The boys walked along the starboard side of the vessel, their arms linked at the elbow.

The longer they walked, the more concerned Ken became and he realized there truly wasn't a single woman passenger aboard the ship.

"Hey, Shibuya... I think something's wrong."

Yuuri sighed, "I know, Conrad's drunk and that man-"

"No, I think we've been set-up." Murata said in a hushed voice, grabbing Yuuri's arm and pulling him off to the side.

"What? Set up?" Yuuri gasped, "How? I mean, how do you know?"

"All the passengers on this ship are male, but I bet you didn't notice- they're all armed, too."

"Armed- yeah, but everyone carries a sword in this world."

"Not everyone." Murata murmured, "But everyone on this ship does. I think... these men might be soldiers posing as passengers."

"That doesn't mean we've been set up- we're already in open water. If they're looking for us, don't you think they would have done something already?"

"True, but I can't help but feel like this is not going to turn out well. We need to get back to the others." Murata turned, pulling Yuuri by the hand.

"Wait- what about Conrad? He's still at the bar-"

"Lord Weller knows how to take care of himself, don't you agree?"

"But he's drunk- I've never seen him fight drunk... If there's a real problem, do you think he can fight like that?"

"Well, I've never been drunk so I don't know..." Murata mused. "But we can't worry about that now- he's not going anywhere so let's just-"

"No- you go tell the others." Yuuri said, planting his feet. "I'm going to find Conrad."

"Shibuya-"

 _ **CRASH!**_

Yuuri and Murata flinched upon hearing a large crash followed by the sound of smashing plates and toppled silverware coming from the dining room.

 _"Get off me!"_

 _"You're under arrest!"_

 _"No, **you're** a pest!"_

 _"Don't move!"_

"That's Conrad-!" Yuuri gasped in horror, turning towards the open dining room door.

"Stop, Shibuya! It's unsafe! Let's go back and tell the others-" Murata panicked, grabbing Yuuri's arm.

 _"You're under arrest by Dai Cimaron!"_

"Dai Cimaron!" Ken hissed. "Comon, Shibuya- let's go!"

"No, he's drunk! He can't fight!" Yuuri shouted, shaking off Ken's grip and running towards the dining room, grabbing a flower vase along the way.

"Shibuya wait!"

In the dining hall in the center of a ring of passengers-turned-soldiers Conrad stood on unsteady feet, sword drawn as he waved it erratically yet menacingly at the men around him. "I'll kill you all!" he snarled before stumbling a few steps. "Come at me!"

Much to Conrart's surprise, the soldiers did just that- rushing at him without hesitation and tackling him to the ground. It was a vicious mess for several moments before Conrad was overwhelmed and dragged to his feet, kicking and struggling.

"We've been looking for you, Lord Weller! Did you think you could escape Dai Cimaron so easily?" the tall blonde man shouted, revealing himself to be a commanding officer.

"Conrad!"

Just then, Yuuri burst in, carrying the flower vase in both hands as he made eye contact with his knight. Before Conrad could tell him not to, Yuuri proceeded to splash Conrad with the contents of the flower vase, drenching him.

"Attack!" Yuuri shouted, tossing the vase aside.

"Who is this child?" the general sneered.

"You idiot!" Conrad sputtered and coughed, unable to see through his drenched bangs. "I told you to splash me if **YOU** were in trouble! Not if I am!"

"Shibuya, run!" Ken shouted from dining room entrance as soldiers began to surround them.

 _"Yuuri!"_

Suddenly a flash of blue filled Yuuri's vision as a man appeared before him, cutting down several soldiers in a flurry of his cape.

"W-what the-"

 _"Never fear! The Blue Wind is here!"_ the man shouted as he descended upon the group of soldiers. Yuuri trembled as he watched the familiar looking masked man dance around in a display of swordsmanship.

"That's- impossible!" the blonde officer sputtered. "How!?" he growled before pointing at _The Blue Wind._ "Get that man!"

Yuuri didn't have much time to think about it as _The Blue Wind_ suddenly ran straight at him, scooping Yuuri into his arms. "Hold on tight." he ordered as he began to flee the scene.

"N-no wait! What about Conrad and the others!?" Yuuri shrieked, looking back at his drunken, shackled Godfather surrounded by soldiers.

"Yuuri, it's me!" _The Blue Wind_ said, half his face obscured by blue cloth.

Just then, several soldiers blocked their path on deck and _The Blue Wind_ set Yuuri down so he could draw his sword once more. However, he didn't get a chance to attack before the soldiers were cut down by none other than Yozak and Hube.

"Yozak!" Yuuri sighed with relief.

"Bocchan! Where's Geika?" Yozak asked before freezing in his tracks as he stared at _The Blue Wind_. "Captain...?" Yozak murmured. "Where'd you get the get-up? I have to say it has far too much blue to be deemed fashionable-"

 _ **BOOM!**_

A loud explosion rattled the ship as the dining room doors burst open and Conrad stumbled out with his sword drawn, dragging Murata out by the scruff of his neck. Behind them, billows of smoke escaped the open doorway.

Conrad deposited Murata unceremoniously on the floor before making eye-contact with _The Blue Wind_.

"Who the hell are you!?" Conrad shouted, tossing his wet hair back.

"Conrad!" Yuuri smiled with relief, running to his godfather's side. "I'm sorry I splashed you-"

"It's **Conrart!** " the man snapped.

 _ **BOOM!**_

"The ship is sinking!" Hube shouted, looking into the distance. "That's cannon fire!"

"Cannon fire!?" Yuuri gasped, following Hube's one-eyed gaze to the stern, where a Dai Cimaron flag ship was hot on their heels.

"We've been set-up." Murata groaned from his spot on the floor. "Where's Lord von Kleist and Lord Bielefeld?"

"They're preparing a boat for our escape- not that it matters." Yozak growled with frustration. "With a ship like that tailing us we're guaranteed to be captured if not killed-"

" _Killed!?_ They're really trying to sink the ship!?" Yuuri shrieked, clinging to Anti-Conrad's side. "Don't they have soldiers on this ship? What gives!?"

"I guess they must really want Lord Weller dead or alive." Murata mused as _The Blue Wind_ turned, pulling his mask down so he could speak more clearly.

"They do want me dead or alive," he said with a sorrowful frown. "This is my fault your majesty- Yozak, didn't you receive my correspondence? I told you specifically to stay at the castle!"

"..."

"C-Conrad?" Yuuri uttered, his head swam as he looked between the two identical looking men. "H-how!? I-if you're Conrad then who is-!?"

 _ **BOOM! CRASH!**_

"Shibuya!" Murata shouted as another cannon ball shook the ship, causing it to list violently for a moment, tumbling it's occupants like leaves in the wind.

 **"Enough!"** Yuuri roared, his pupils slanting as blue light engulfed the ship. The wood shuddered and groaned in protest as magic tendrils shot out of the sea and tangled around _Sky Blue II_ dragging it upwards until it was sailing straight once more.

 **"You attack this vessel without care for the lives on board be they friend or foe! This is truly disheartening..."**

"Y-Yuuri!" Murata shouted, "You're going to turn the sea violent!"

 **"The reckless abandon in which you would attack your own makes you more animal than man. If you do not correct your path you will only cause destruction and pain until nothing righteous is left in your world."**

"It's the demon king!" a soldier shouted, pointing up at Yuuri's hovering form. "Take aim and fire! Do it now!"

 **"It is not my nature to take lives, but you leave me no choice!"**

"He always says that..." Ken grumbled as _The Blue Wind_ crouched next to him, offering the sage his hand.

Anti-Conrad watched Yuuri's water dragons terrorized the Dai Cimaron flag ship, ripping apart their cannons and masts without actually injuring anyone.

 **"Justice be done!"**

* * *

It was warm... almost uncomfortably so as Yuuri began to come back to his senses.

"Ughh, Wolfram get off me..." he croaked, swatting feebly at the air.

"Yuuri, are you awake?"

"Thanks to you," Yuuri muttered grumpily. "Spoiled prince..."

"Yuuri..."

"Conrad...?"

Yuuri's eyes groggily peeked open before immediately snapping shut.

"Uaaaahhh it's too bright..."

"My apologies, Yuuri. Please wait one moment."

Yuuri's eyes relaxed behind their lids as Conrad drew the curtains closed.

"Is that better, can you open your eyes now?"

"Conrad," Yuuri rasped, "my throat-"

"Drink this, it'll help. You've been asleep for some time."

Yuuri opened his eyes and attempted to sit up as he took in his surroundings. Conrad, _(his Conrad!)_ was sitting across from him in a chair, smiling and looking perfect and utterly adorable just as Yuuri last remembered him to be.

"Drink." he ordered softly, and Yuuri took several large gulps of water before he found his voice once more.

"Yo-you- but how?" Yuuri said, unable to keep his voice from wavering as tears began to prick the corners of his eyes. "Is it really you?"

"Yes, it's really me." he said with a smile, taking Yuuri's cup and placing it on the night stand.

 _"I'm so sorry!"_ Yuuri cried, holding his arms out for a hug that Conrad couldn't refuse as he sat on the edge of the bed so Yuuri could bury his face into his chest. "I was so worried! Murata told me you were going to die if we didn't find the masks- w-what happened? You were so mean to me, I knew that couldn't possibly be you- but how?"

"Mean!? I was never mean to you!"

Yuuri's heart froze in his chest as he heard Anti-Conrad's voice cut in from the doorway.

"Now's not the time." Conrad said softly, brushing Yuuri's bangs out his eyes. "You should rest."

Rest? REST? Yuuri couldn't rest! He couldn't even BREATHE as he stared, eyes wide and mouth agape at the two identical men.

"T-there's-! Two!? Two Conrads!?" Yuuri gaped, his fingers digging into Conrad's arm as he struggled to process what he was seeing.

"When was I ever mean to you!?" Anti-Conrad spat, kicking a chair as he stalked his way to Yuuri's bedside.

"Yuuri!"

If Yuuri wasn't overwhelmed enough, Wolfram suddenly burst into the room, approaching him with long strides.

"You're awake!" Wolfram said with relief, pushing Conrad #2 out of the way as he grabbed the boy's face in his hands. "Your fever went down- how are you feeling?"

 **"T-t-t-t-t-two!"** Yuuri cried, pointing at the men in the room. "Th-there's two!"

"Uhg, I know," Wolfram groaned, "and the second one is just as bad as the first."

 _'This is too much!'_

"Wha- Yuuri!" Wolfram gasped in disbelief. "He fainted!"

* * *

 _'It wasn't a dream... We made it to Caloria.'_ Yuuri thought miserably as he sat at the dinner table in Lady Flynn's estate in nothing but his pajamas. He wasn't alone, the table was filled with familiar faces as everyone ate and conversed in low tones.

However, there was one- no, _two_ familiar faces that Yuuri couldn't stop staring at.

Anti-Conrad and his twin.

"Whoever sent the mask must have wanted Shibuya to wear it." Ken said thoughtfully as he stuffed his face. "To capture him, don't you think?"

"Murata I've been listening to you this whole time-" Yuuri said, rubbing his aching forehead. "But you still haven't explained to me why there's TWO-" he sobbed dramatically. "Two Conrads-!"

"Well, I'm about as surprised as you are Shibuya. Though if I had to guess, I bet that when those masks separate a soul into three pieces, they must make physical bodies to house the soul fragments while they're apart. Remember what Anissina told us about Snow Gunter?"

Gunter perked up at that, blinking owlishly. "Ah yes... when my soul was removed from my body due to the Wincott poison, it had to have a vessel."

"That's right," Murata nodded. "Souls need vessels to anchor them in the physical world."

"Two Conrads...?" Yuuri grumbled to himself, moving his food around on his plate without eating.

"I see," Lady Flynn cut in, looking at the men before her. "Sage, you said there were three masks. The mask of Eins, Zwei and Drei... Lord Weller first wore the mask of Drei activating the curse."

"That's right." Ken replied.

"You said that each mask represents parts of a person's inner spirit: the 'face' they show to the world, their family and then the face they show no one."

"Go on."

"The mask of Drei revealed Conrart's truest self- the part of his soul he shows to no one. That's _'Anti-Conrad._ ' as Lord Wolfram calls him... Which means ah... I do apologize, what should I call you?" she blinked, looking at Conrad #2.

"Me?" Conrad #2 asked with a smile. "I would say 'Conrad' but that will get confusing rather fast, don't you think?" he turned then, looking at Yuuri.

"Perhaps you would like to give me a name, your majesty?"

"Ehh? Wouldn't that make me _your_ Godfather?" Yuuri laughed as Conrad #2 smiled warmly at him. "Hmm, yeah! Alright- Conrad, for the sake of clarity and everyone's sanity I dub thee... mmm... Raion!"

" _Ryan!?_ " Wolfram sputtered, "What a stupid name! I should have known! You named Reginald 'Pochi!' so of course you would name him Ryan-"

"Not Ryan, **Raion**!" Yuuri defended, "Also what's wrong with Pochi!?"

"Raion means 'Lion' in Japanese, right?" Conrad #2 chuckled. "How fitting, thank you, Yuuri."

"So that means Raion here must be Conrad's second face." Flynn said, stroking her chin in thought.

"Mm, you got it!" Murata laughed. "I believe Raion is Conrad's second face, the face he shows to his friends and family." Ken concluded. "Does that make sense, Shibuya?"

"I still have _SO_ many questions." Yuuri groaned. "Does that mean there's another Conrad out there- like a **third** Conrad?"

"I think so." Ken replied.

"What were you doing on that ship, Raion?" Yuuri asked, turned to look at the man.

"Well... the last thing I remember I was unwrapping birthday presents with his majesty... then I woke up in a cell. It was very disorienting. Dai Cimaron soldiers then began transporting me somewhere when I escaped. I sent a correspondence to Yozak to tell him I was on my way back to Shinma when I was intersected. Svelera's ports were flooded with soldiers from Dai Cimaron looking for me. So I decided to go undercover as _The Blue Wind_ and take a ship to Caloria to avoid detection."

"How'd you get the outfit?" Yozak laughed.

"A hero never tells his secrets."

"Alright, but that still doesn't explain why you appeared in a cell or why Dai Cimaron was involved." Yuuri said, looking at Wolfram with concern. "Or how we made it to Caloria."

"You're the only one who doesn't remember because you used your magic again, you dolt." Wolfram grumbled. "You put all the soldiers onto Dai Cimaron's flag ship- then you broke the masts so they couldn't follow us. Then you kept S _ky Blue II_ afloat until we made it to port."

"I did all of that? No wonder I'm so tired!"

"No kidding." Murata chuckled nervously, "You really should be more careful... Using that much magic can be really bad for your health."

"It can kill you." Anti-Conrad cut in, glaring daggers at Yuuri. "You could die from using that much magic outside of demon territory. Don't sugar coat it. That's exactly how Julia died."

"That's enough." Raion said, looking at Anti-Conrad with a blank expression. "Do not speak to him like that."

"You know, I was wondering why I had such big gaps in my memory." Anti-Conrad spat. "But the longer I'm around you, the more it's all coming back to me and I remember _you._ " he said, pointing a finger at Raion.

"Well, that's not a surprise. We're the same person, right?" Raion smiled, but the warmth never reached his eyes.

"Wrong. You're a liar." Anti-Conrad growled, getting to his feet. "I can't stand to be in the same room as you. If what this boy says is true I don't want the masks to be found because that means I'll have to exist within the same BODY as you and honestly? I'd rather die."

"So dramatic!" Raion laughed, "Are you always this dark?"

"Fuck off!"

Yuuri was dumbfounded by watching Conrad argue with... himself.

"I'm out of here-" Anti-Conrad looked the boy king in the eyes. "and I'm taking this with me." he finished, snatching a bottle of wine off the table before storming out of the dining hall.

 _"Ahahaha!"_

Everyone flinched upon hearing Raion's laughter.

"Please don't mind him. I think he can be a bit of a drama queen."

"So, what does that mean exactly..." Yuuri wondered aloud. "When he says he 'knows you' and you talk about him like he's not you..."

"Well, I'm not an expert on these things and up until now I didn't know there was a second 'me' running around," Raion said, crossing his arms. "but to me it feels like I'm seeing a part of myself personified. I can guess what's going through his mind because I'm connected to him but he thinks very differently than I do."

"Why'd he call you a liar?" Ken asked through a mouth full of food.

"As I said, he's a bit of a drama queen." Raion laughed.

"So, if there's another Conrart out there," Yozak thought aloud. "He'd represent the face captain shows to the world... Geika, are you sure those masks only show those specific parts of a person's soul?"

Ken shrugged at that. "Nope, I'm not sure at all. That's my theory based on what we know and it seems to be correct so far... If there is a third Lord Weller, what he's like; I have no clue."

"Well, you're always welcome in my estate." Flynn said with a smile. "It's wonderful to have you. Should you need anything you need only ask. We've prepared a ship for you when you're ready but please take as long as you'd like."

"Thank you Lady Flynn, it's great to see you again, too." Yuuri smiled. "We should head out right away-"

"Not so fast, kiddo." Yozak shook his head, "I don't think you're in good enough shape to head out your majesty. We should rest a day while we put together a plan."

"But Conrad's still in danger! We have to find the masks!" Yuuri huffed.

"I'm quite alright." Raion smiled. "I escaped, and I'm sure if there is another fragment of Lord Weller running around, than he's probably faring just as well. We're rather excellent killers." he finished with a smile, causing his words to go undetected by Yuuri.

"I guess..."

"You should rest, highness." Gunter sniffled, dabbing his eyes. "You worry me so...!"

"Ahhh, alright, alright!" Yuuri said, waving his hands frantically. "I'll rest! Just don't cry, Gunter!"

Conrad #2 laughed at that, smiling in a way that was achingly familiar to Yuuri and it warmed the young king's heart to see it. He desperately missed the man's easy-going smiles, jokes and laughter and hadn't realized just how much he'd missed his kind-hearted knight.

"Alright, if I'm going to rest and tour the town I want Raion to be the one to go with me." Yuuri grinned.

"Not alone, you're not." Wolfram grumbled.

"What if I take Raion and Anti-Conrad? I can't get much safer than TWO Conrads-"

"He's not invincible." Wolfram said with a roll of his eyes. "Also, what do you expect the rest of us to do? Wait here while you go on the town? Obviously we'll all be going together."

"Wolfram, calm down. His majesty probably just wished to spend time with me because he enjoys my company more than yours. It's unfortunate, because if you weren't so overly attached and jealous he might actually prefer you over me." Conrad smiled.

Yuuri's eyes bugged out of his head as he stared at Conrad, mouth agape. What did he just say!? NO WAY! Surely he must have a death wish, speaking to Wolfram like that!

However, instead of cursing and throwing a fit like Yuuri expected the blonde to do, Wolfram simply gritted his teeth and continued eating without saying a word. This reaction spoke volumes to Yuuri and it dawned upon him that Raion... although he looked like Conrad, definitely wasn't **his** Conrad.

His Conrad would never say something like that to Wolfram.

Wolfram's reaction also told Yuuri that Wolfram understood Raion wasn't the _real_ Conrad.

At least, not yet.

* * *

 _Thank you for the review, Wordtypo! I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long. This chapter came MUCH easier than the last. The next chapter we'll learn more about Raion, Anti-Conrad will get jealous and romance will bloom! :)_


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